Tenzou awoke the next morning...and wished he hadn't.
WOW. He felt TERRIBLE. It was like every drop of water in his body had evaporated overnight. His head spun, his stomach was twisted.
He was never drinking again.
"Ugghh..."
"I hear yah, buddy." Came the tortured reply to his groan. Tenzou sat up enough to look over at Genma, who was half lying out of the bed as if he had made an attempt to get up and decided it was impossible.
"This...is horrible." Tenzou wheezed, squeezing his eyes shut. Light was not helping.
"Yah...you kinda just...accept it after a while."
WHY? Why would anyone want to accept pain? He didn't care how 'lame' he was, he was sticking to one drink after this.
Gai sat right up, rubbing his temples. "Genma, I honestly do not understand how you consistently get hangovers with the copious amounts of alcohol you ingest on a weekly basis."
Tenzou grabbed his pillow and tried to smother himself with it; this had to end. It was suddenly stolen from him, and he groaned again. "No...please...I don't want to go on."
"I think you'll find this will help you more, my suffering friend."
Tenzou cracked an eye open to see Gai holding a glass of water out to him. He took it with a look of appreciation and downed it in one shot.
"Ugh...it tastes horrible. My mouth is like a desert."
Gai held out a water bottle to him. "Take all of that. I apologize; we did this to you. It was worth it, though, for us at least." Gai added with a wide grin, his pearly whites sparkling and bringing searing pain to Tenzou's aching head.
The mokuton user snatched the bottle and stuck his tongue out at Gai. He put the bottle to his lips and tipped his head back. He didn't stop until it was empty.
"AH! Wow...yes, that's better." He handed the bottle back to Gai, then flopped backwards and pulled the covers over his head.
"At least we don't have our mission for another two days." Genma wheezed from his bed of agony.
Ugh, the mission. They were supposed to be preparing for it. He was pretty sure he was out of commission for the rest of the day; hopefully Kakashi would understand.
Thinking of his captain brought an instant wave of memories to the almond eyed shinobi that almost had him sitting up in bed with shock.
Oh...he...he and Kakashi had kissed.
And he'd REALLY liked it.
That was pretty much all he remembered. He recalled WHY they'd done it and how frustrated he had been afterwards, but those were the only things that made it through the haze of his hangover.
He was SO glad he'd just...left when Kakashi had suggested it. He completely understood why they couldn't just...make out like they were teenagers. Kakashi was his captain; his ANBU captain. ANBU was a pretty big deal, and their group were going to be doing some seriously dangerous missions. They couldn't have anything that would upset the dynamic of their team. What if Genma and Gai found out, and they assumed Kakashi would give Tenzou special treatment? The thought sounded impossible as his two teammates had the best attitudes he'd ever seen from any shinobi, but still.
Not to mention the fact that Tenzou still wasn't sure...what exactly was up with his hormones. He realized he was definitely attracted to Kakashi, but what did that mean? Should he always look to date men now?
Date...as if Tenzou was going to be doing that.
He suddenly remembered the look Kakashi had given him after their kiss. He blushed and felt his stomach summersault. No one had ever looked at him like that before. And Kakashi...Tenzou felt himself get excited just thinking about how attractive his captain had been, with lust gleaming in his eyes.
Okay. He needed to think about something else.
It didn't matter that Kakashi...well, had also enjoyed kissing him. He clearly wasn't interested in Tenzou that way. Well. At least, not...seriously. He couldn't be.
His thoughts were blessedly distracted by the sound of Genma hurling up his insides in the bathroom.
The way Tenzou was feeling, he'd be next.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
When Tenzou had felt human enough to leave his bed, he found that Kakashi was long gone. Part of him was glad as he still wasn't sure he had his shit together enough to face him. He was KIND of embarrassed. He knew Kakashi had initiated it, but...it was the reason WHY he did. Tenzou was so hopeless he didn't even know how to recognize when he was hot for someone. That was just sad. If you needed someone to KISS you for you to realize you want their body, well...'nuff said.
Another part of him wondered if he'd embarrassed himself WHILE kissing his captain. Cause, the way Kakashi kissed him, he sure knew what he was doing. But Tenzou didn't. At all.
Then there was the fact that Kakashi knew Tenzou was attracted to him.
Let's not forget about that.
He jumped into the shower and cranked the cold water up. He just needed to stop thinking about it.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooo
Tenzou wandered the ANBU halls, looking for a place he could grab some food that wouldn't make him want to puke up his insides. He actually was amazed he hadn't thrown up yet, but he wasn't ruling it out.
"Shodai!"
Tenzou recognized the voice and his eyes widened in surprise. He spun and bowed, low and crisp.
"Hiruzen-sama! It is a pleasure and an honour to see you."
The Hokage laughed pleasantly, placing a gentle hand on the mokuton user's shoulder.
"My, my, "Shodai", always so official. Please, rise."
He did was he was told. He was wearing his mask, so the Hokage couldn't see, but he was smiling pleasantly. Hiruzen had been very good to him so Tenzou was always glad to see him.
"I am relieved I found you; I have something very important we need to discuss."
Tenzou cocked his head. "What is it, Hiruzen-sama?"
The Hokage suddenly seemed serious; and annoyed. Clearly, he wasn't happy about what he was going to share.
"The council...they would like to meet with you, Shodai."
Tenzou stiffened. The council...how he loathed the council. They treated him like a ticking time bomb. If it was up to them, he would have been trapped in a tower his entire life. Hiruzen forbade it, however. He allowed Tenzou to grow up under shinobi supervision but insisted he be allowed to attend the academy and have some semblance of a normal life. He would always be grateful to the Hokage for that.
Hiruzen knew how Tenzou felt; he seemed to give him a sympathetic smile. "I know, young one. I know. However, the good news is if they are satisfied with this meeting they will be off your back for good."
Tenzou leaned forward slightly.
For real?
Holy shit.
"What do I have to do, Hiruzen-sama?" He asked eagerly. He wasn't even going to try to hide the fact that that would make his freakin' life.
Hiruzen sighed. Clearly, the part he didn't like hadn't come yet. "Well. They would like to ask you some questions. But, mostly...they want demonstrations. It will be you before the council in the chuunin exams stadium. Whatever they ask to see, you must show them."
Tenzou was slightly confused. "Ah...what do they want to see?"
"Well. They will most likely ask you to demonstrate your wood release. They have no idea how far you have come in your training, or how well you can manipulate it. You are a very impressive young shinobi, Shodai. I am certain you will pass with flying colors."
Tenzou couldn't help but stiffen again. So, he would have to perform a few tricks to impress the council enough to back the fuck off. Fine. He would do that.
"Thank you, Hiruzen-sama. I won't let you down."
The Hokage smiled brightly. "I know, Shodai. This...is more for you, though. Things will be a lot easier for you after this, I promise. Oh! One more thing. I figured you could use a little bit of support, so I spoke to your captain about bringing your team along. I'm sure they would be more then happy to come."
Tenzou didn't know how to feel about that. He wanted to keep most of his...unsightly private life private. He didn't want to look like a human experiment being tested out in front of his new friends. But, he appreciated the thought.
"Thank you for your consideration, Hiruzen-sama. I appreciate everything you have done for me. Really."
Tenzou felt himself get a little choked up. The Hokage really had gone out of his way to help him quite a bit. He knew he must have had a hand in him getting accepted to ANBU; the council would NOT have liked that.
The Hokage smiled bright and warm. "It is my pleasure. NOW! We must get going."
Tenzou started.
"Uh...wait. Right now?"
"Oh! Did I not mention that? Sorry. Yes, they would like to see you immediately."
Fuck.
"Ah...of course. May I...get some food first, Hiruzen-sama?"
The Hokage laughed loudly. "Of course! How silly of me. Kakashi did mention you boys had a late night last night, hahaha!"
Tenzou wanted to die.
Thanks a LOT, Kakashi.
"...Ah...yes. We did."
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Hiruzen treated Tenzou to a delightful breakfast/lunch and then they were off. The mokuton user was nervous for this 'meeting' as he knew the council members tended to rag on him way more then was necessary. A couple of them claimed to have known the First Hokage when he was alive, and he supposed they were all huffy and indignant that his cells had been stolen and implanted into Tenzou.
As if, as an infant, he had begged for it.
All part of his evil, master plan to rule the world.
Friggen idiots.
When they arrived at the arena the first thing he noticed was his team. They were standing at the opposite side of the circular fighting area, looking just as unimpressed as he was.
Hiruzen had been right; seeing them there made him feel better. Guess he was Hokage for a reason.
Tenzou spun around and looked up. In the first row of seats sat the council. Some of them had scrolls and quills, ready to write. Most of them just stared at him.
Best get this shit over with.
"I am here on your request, Council." He called up to them. One of the older ones leaned forward.
"Yes. Thank you for being somewhat punctual." He sniffed.
Oh seriously? Fuck you.
Another one spoke up. "The first thing we would like to address is a rumour that you have a wood dragon similar to the Shodai's. Is this true?"
"It is in no way similar to the First Hokage's technique. I have been informed his was 30 stories tall and could take on the Nine Tails. Mine could accomplish no such feat."
"But...you have a wood dragon?" She asked, clearly not a stickler for details.
Tenzou sighed. "Yes, I am physically capable of making a dragon out of wood."
"Show us."
Suck his dick.
"Certainly."
He supposed he had Genma to thank for that mental insult.
He walked to the centre of the arena, using all of his practiced composure to be graceful and not show his annoyance. He noticed Gai give him a big thumbs up from the back of the ring and his heart swelled. Gai really was way too good to him.
He came to a stop when he thought he had enough room.
He flew through the familiar hand signs for his wood release. He smacked his hands onto the ground.
A giant column of wood erupted from the ground, spraying rocks everywhere. It soared into the air, then twisted around itself like a pretzel. In another instant, scales and feet and a head sprouted from its body.
The dragon unwound itself and hissed threateningly, nothing compared to the Shodai's creation but certainly a sight in itself.
Tenzou took a deep breath; that jutsu took a lot out of him. He cast a curious glance over his shoulder at his teammates. To his pleasure, they all looked very impressed. They were whispering amongst themselves.
"I see. We have heard you can create objects with your wood release; please demonstrate."
Tenzou kept his cool, but he was getting really annoyed. They were asking for all of his most chakra consuming jutsu's.
He concentrated and then once again placed his palms on the ground.
A house weaved itself into existence and landed next to the wood dragon. The dragon glanced at it and yawned with boredom.
The council members nodded and murmured amongst each other.
In the back, Tenzou's team mates were not feeling much differently about the situation than their mokuton comrade.
"This is Grade A Bullshit." Genma growled, crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't think they have a purpose for this fuckery. They're just getting him to jump to their commands because they can."
Gai and Kakashi were silent for a moment.
"Tenzou seems to be handling them very well, though. I am also incredibly impressed with what he has created. If one thing can come of this foolishness, it is a much better understanding of the extent of our teammates abilities." Was Gai's response.
Kakashi nodded. "I had no idea he integrated architecture into his mokuton."
"Heh, never again will we have to camp in the rain!" Genma grinned. "What a guy."
Tenzou waited impatiently for the council's next command.
"Alright, we would like to see a general demonstration of your grasp of the First Hokage's mokuton."
Silence.
That's all they were giving him...?
"Be specific, please." Tenzou called out.
They looked annoyed.
"Just...do stuff." Was their clarification.
Right.
Urge to kill, rising...
He took a deep, calming breath. He would show no anger. He was a cool, smooth ANBU shinobi. He was also creative; he could give them something that would hopefully satisfy their 'curiosity' so he could get on with his life.
He stretched briefly.
He took a moment to level the council with a look that told them to hold onto their asses.
A moment later, four giant columns of wood burst out of the ground in each corner of the stadium. From those, wood sprouted into the air, weaving and twisting and turning around each other like a kaleidoscope of flowing beams. Trees grew from the sides of the walls, and from each of those trees a wood clone of himself leaped out. Those wood clones formed hand signs and wood swirled around them in a circle. Their wood release mingled with Tenzou's like they were curious animals meeting each other for the first time. Underneath the mokuton user a detailed, traditional tower grew from the ground. It elevated him into the air and over all of his creations. Little shrines popped up beside the tower.
By the time the mokuton user was finished, the entire stadium was full of wood released delights. It was like a clockwork of weaving, living, twisting wood.
He was freakin' exhausted. And, technically, still hung over.
The council members stared with their jaws hanging open. Hiruzen looked absolutely beside himself with delight. He was clapping, actually.
Tenzou glanced back at his teammates again; they all looked stunned, too.
"Is this to your satisfaction, Council?" Tenzou called, barely keeping his exhaustion from his voice. If they asked him to do something else, the almond eyed shinobi wouldn't have the chakra to get back to the ANBU base.
They all fell into quick, whispered discussion between themselves. Hiruzen leaned to the side slightly in an attempt to over hear them.
After a couple of minutes, they seemed to reach a consensus. They all returned to their seats.
"Ehem!" The one who had asked him to 'do stuff' spoke up. "We see that you have ah...come a long way, young Tenzou. We have nothing further to ask of you. However, we do wish to speak to your ANBU captain."
Tenzou was suddenly angry. Why did they have to bring Kakashi into this?
He noticed a movement below him. Kakashi was attempting to walk up to where Tenzou was. Except...there were quite a few things in his way. The younger shinobi manipulated one of the small wooden beams to slide underneath his captain and project him up and forward. He dumped the startled looking jounin next to him on the tower with a tired smile.
Kakashi placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. He turned to the council. "Yes?"
"Ah, Hatake Kakashi. We are most, most relieved to see that you will be the one keeping watch over Tenzou; your reputation precedes you."
Kakashi inclined his head to their compliment, but did not stop there. "I hate to disappoint the Council, but I'm not watching over him."
They looked at each other.
"You...are his captain, are you not?"
"Oh! If you mean that I am the one who is responsible for his performance on missions and his continued improvement as a shinobi, then yes. That is me."
Only because Tenzou had come to respect Kakashi so much did he resist snorting loudly. As it was, he kept his face and body language totally neutral.
The council member who spoke sighed. "Yes, yes. That's what we meant. As his captain, do you stand by his reliability as a ninja and his dedication to the village?"
"Most definitely." Was Kakashi's resounding answer, without a second of hesitation. Tenzou felt his heart expanding. He had never had so much support in his life.
"How can you be so sure of that, Kakashi-san?" Asked another member.
"Well, I am an excellent judge of character. Oh, also, he's passed all of my tests. I didn't just 'let' him into the team, you know."
They seemed to murmur amongst each other again. Kakashi waited patiently, but Tenzou was starting to sweat.
"Alright, we have come to a decision. In one month's time, we will interview Kakashi-san and see if he still thinks the same as he does now. If he keeps his opinion, we shall give Tenzou the seal of approval and we will allow him to be as he may from now on."
Tenzou almost whooped out loud.
YES! THANK YOU YES!
Instead, he bowed crisply. "Thank you, Council."
"Well, don't thank us. You will have Kakashi-san to thank, IF he approves you."
Yah well, go fuck yourselves, too.
They stood and ushered themselves out, waving to Kakashi and bowing to Hiruzen. When they were gone, Tenzou spun around and faced Kakashi with all of his conflicting emotions blazing in his eyes.
"Sempai...I don't know how to thank you. This means so much to me."
Kakashi placed both hands on Tenzou's shoulders this time and responded to his urgency with a kind, warm smile. "You deserve it, Tenzou. You've done nothing to warrant any suspicion."
He hung his head, his exhaustion catching up to him. "I...I know. But, this is how it's been my whole life."
Anger flashed in Kakashi's eyes, but Tenzou did not see it.
"I'm not going to let anyone push you around, Tenzou. That's my job."
Laughing, the mokuton user glanced up at his captain. He was smiling and felt much better. Having Kakashi on his side...what more could anyone ask for? Even the council respected him.
"OI!"
They looked down and saw Genma and Gai waving at them.
"Tenzou! Way to go, Rockstar!" Genma cheered, giving him two thumbs up. "That'll show em!"
"YOU WERE MOST IMPRESSIVE! WHAT A DISPLAY OF YOUTHFUL VIGOR AND SPIRIT!"
Tenzou had no idea how to tell his friends what their support truly meant to him. He really barely knew them, and yet they had been great to him. He slowly crunched the tower down so he and Kakashi were level with his team mates.
"Thank you...really, thank you for coming. I...well, I didn't really want you guys to have to see that, but I am glad you're here."
The two jounin grinned broadly.
"Hey, no problem. You're part of the team, so we gotta stick together." Genma slapped Tenzou on the back roughly. "Besides, I almost killed you with liquor last night, so I figured I needed to make up for it."
Gai was extremely emotional.
"THIS IS WHAT YOUTH IS ABOUT! I FEEL THE SPIRIT OF THE SHINOBI FILLING OUR HEARTS AND INVIGORATING OUR SOULS!" He cried as he pumped his fist into the air, jutted out his hip and sent a blinding grin up into oblivion.
"Geeze, Gai...do you always have to take it to the next level?"
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Tenzou offered to buy his team dinner for their support and they whole heartedly accepted. He brought them to the famous ramen stand in Konoha and they inhaled their bowls just as fast as Tenzou. He realized, with guilt, that his friends had not had the luxury of eating before the meeting like he had.
He bought them all another round of food to compensate.
Tenzou noted with interest that Kakashi managed to keep himself masked even when he ate. He found himself wondering WHY the copy-nin even wore a mask to begin with. On missions; yes, that made sense. But...why did he need to disguise himself in his own village? And, what exactly was he disguising? Everyone basically knew what he looked like. It wasn't like, if he took off his mask, people would be like "Oh! Who is this stranger?" No one else in the village looked like Kakashi. No one else had wild, spiky silver hair, pale skin and a freakin SHARINGAN for an eye. Like...come on.
Maybe he wanted to hide his dashing good looks so women wouldn't stalk him. Judging from what he'd seen last night, he would not put it past a good portion of the female population. Throw in his celebrity status and you had yourself a fanclub.
That had Tenzou wondering something else.
Was Kakashi...into women? He HAD very enthusiastically kissed Tenzou. Not that the mokuton user knew ANYTHING about romance; he could very well not give a crap what gender he shacked up with, as long as he was attracted to them. But, Tenzou had a feeling that didn't really happen very often. It seemed most people were attracted to one sex or the other.
"Yo, Tenzou." Genma's voice startled the almond eyed shinobi out of his thoughts.
"Ah! Yes, sorry, what is it?"
"Why is the council on your ass, anyway?"
Tenzou sighed. He poked at his noodles. "I don't actually know for sure. My theory is that they don't appreciate what was done to me in terms of disrespect towards their star Hokage. I understand that aspect of it, but I can't figure out how they don't understand that I wasn't actually a part of it."
Genma blinked.
"Uh. Sorry, what was done to you?"
Tenzou froze. Oh FAK. He had gotten so comfortable with his friends that he forgot he kept that aspect of himself a secret.
"...Umm..."
Suddenly Kakashi stood, stretching and yawning loudly. "Maa...really, we need to leave. We're taking up all the seats at the stand and we haven't eaten anything in a while."
Tenzou slid his half full bowl of noodles away inconspicuously. "Yes, I finished a while ago."
Genma and Gai stood obediently and Tenzou paid the bill. He noticed Genma eyeing him, though. Now that he opened his big, fat mouth, he would have to tell his friends the truth. He wasn't doing it in public, though.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
When they returned to the base, the only thing Tenzou could focus on was his bed. He was still exhausted from using up practically all of his chakra trying to impress the Council of Ignorant Assholes, and now he had two whopping servings of ramen to digest with his remaining energy. He walked forward numbly, stumbled over his own feet and fell into bed. Then it was sweet, sweet darkness.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Tenzou blearily registered a pressure on his legs...definitely heavier than his blanket. Wait. Had he even put his blanket over him when he fell asleep? Pretty sure he didn't...
He sat bolt upright in bed when something wet and rough smeared right across his cheek.
"WHATTHEHELLAHHH!?"
Staring back at him was a tiny pug. With...a Konoha forehead protector.
What...the...
"Hey." It said.
So. He was still dreaming?
"Umm. Hello?" Tenzou was starting to wonder what the hell was in his ramen.
"My name is Pakkun; my master is Kakashi. He told me to stay here until you woke up." The dog answered, looking just as bored as Kakashi usually did.
Tenzou rubbed his eyes. "Right. Okay. So, I'm awake. Where is everyone?"
"Training out back. Boss said you had enough of a workout today, so they didn't wake you up."
"Ah..." Tenzou yawned, long and loud. He didn't feel that much better; but he guessed it was going to take more then a power nap to bring back the chakra he'd lost that morning.
Pakkun seemed to come to this realization, too. "Boss told me that you don't actually have to go out if you're not up for it. He said there's another mission debrief tonight that's a lot more important then training."
Tenzou nodded, considering his options. He didn't feel up for sparring that was for damn sure. He didn't exactly want to just...sit around all day, though. They would have plenty of sleep tonight.
"Ah, Pakkun? Was there another option Kakashi left me with?"
The pug grinned.
"Well...yes. But you're not going to like it."
Tenzou sighed. Yes...he could definitely believe that.
"Well. Tell me what it is so I can get mad and get on with it."
Another big grin from the little dog before he continued. "He says, and I quote; "If Tenzou wants something to do other then train, tell him my laundry has been piling up for weeks and really needs a good washing."
Tenzou stared at the dog.
"I told you you wouldn't like it."
"I'd rather black out from chakra exhaustion."
Pakkun laughed, his voice surprisingly gruff for such a tiny body. "That's pretty much exactly what he thought you would say."
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Tenzou put on his ANBU gear with the little dog sitting on the bed waiting for him. He knew this was probably a really bad idea, but if he succumbed and did Kakashi's laundry he knew it would open the flood gates for WAY more demeaning tasks to be thrown his way. He really, really would rather be in the hospital then have to deal with the consequences of that.
Once he slipped on his mask he turned back to the ninja pug. "Alright; lead the way, Pakkun."
"Righto. Oh...I guess I'll give you a bit of advice; try and avoid sparring with Kakashi. I saw that look in his eye when he talked about you. That's his 'cause shit' look. You've got a big, red target on your forehead little man."
Tenzou resisted the urge to bash his head on the wall. He really, really hoped Kakashi would give him a break today. Also, a dog that was a foot tall calling him 'little man'; what the hell was going on.
"Thank you, Pakkun. I have a feeling that if Kakashi wants to toss me around it's going to happen no matter what I do."
"You know him so well already."
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
They arrived on the training grounds to see Kakashi exchanging blows with Gai. It was a very impressive sight; Gai was a powerhouse and Kakashi was incredibly quick. They spun around each other and crashed knees into knees and fists into palms one after the other so fluidly it seemed like they didn't even have to think about what they were doing.
One attack sent Gai flying backwards and Kakashi took that moment to leap back and land a yard or so away from Tenzou. He signalled up to Gai to wait before he slowly walked towards them. Tenzou silently prayed for mercy.
"You're awake so soon, Shodai."
Tenzou nodded curtly. "Yes, Sempai...I felt a presence in the room." He said, glancing down at the pug. Pakkun shrugged.
Kakashi stopped when he was a friendly distance from Tenzou and seemed to assess him silently. He stepped forward, reaching up and touching the edges of the mokuton user's porcelain mask.
"May I tilt this up?"
Tenzou wasn't sure what Kakashi was doing, but he had the ludicrous thought for JUST a moment that he was going to kiss him again.
"Yes, Sempai."
Up it went, discreetly. Kakashi was blocking Tenzou from view, but no one else was really out there to see his face anyway.
"You don't look like you're ready to spar." His captain concluded softly, lowering his teammates mask again.
"I'm...still tired. I didn't know what else to do, though." As in...I am not doing your damn laundry.
Kakashi was silent again. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Well. You overused your mokuton today. But, you haven't had any hand to hand combat. I'll rough you up a bit and then send you back to bed."
Tenzou could tell Kakashi was grinning wickedly behind his mask. Friggen...really.
Whatever. Honestly, by this time, he should be a pro at dealing with Kakashi. He made sure to keep his body language completely neutral.
"Yes, Sempai." Was his answer. WHY did he like this guy again?
Kakashi turned on his heel and walked away. Tenzou glanced down at Pakkun and the dog shook his head, as if saying "sorry, you're fucked."
Tenzou sighed lightly and followed his captain.
Really, if he thought about it, this was good training. On missions, you weren't always going to have the choice of fighting when you were fit and ready. You could get attacked at any time.
He kept this in mind when they stopped and Kakashi slid his legs apart and crouched slightly. Tenzou did the same, trying to focus on watching his captains every move and not on how badly his body was protesting him moving at all.
"Ready, Kouhai?"
"Yes, Sem-PAI!" Tenzou leaped out of the way just in time to avoid getting kicked in the stomach. Kakashi was just...THERE. That's how fast he was. And, judging from his speed, he had no intentions of going lightly on the brunette shinobi.
Fine, Tenzou could handle it.
As Kakashi's leg landed on the floor, Tenzou spun around him to his back and kicked low, right behind his knee. His captain hopped to his other leg and brought the targeted knee into the air, using the weight already placed on his planted foot to throw his elevated leg back and kick right at Tenzou's head. The mokuton user dove forward, between Kakashi's legs, rolled, then popped to his knees and dragged his leg in a wide arc on the ground to sweep Kakashi's feet out from under him.
His captain leaped up in time and back flipped, landing away from Tenzou. As Kakashi was mid air the younger shinobi blasted forward, waiting for him to land so he could crack him in the face.
When he did land, his captain quickly brought his forearm up and blocked Tenzou's punch dead on. They were so close to each other now that Kakashi could hear his teammate panting loudly.
"How much longer do you think you can keep up with me, Kouhai?" He purred.
"Until I pass out, Sempai." Was Tenzou's curt answer. Kakashi grinned to himself; his little mokuton playmate was not impressed. But, he was still fighting, and that's what mattered.
They separated from each other, took barely a second to decide on a next move and then clashed again. Tenzou had another minute of matching Kakashi blow for blow before he ran out of the kind of stamina one needed to face Hatake Kakashi. The first hit that landed was a punch to his side. He grunted and leaped back, putting his hands up as his captain went in for another punch. He blocked it, but had no hope of dodging the kick that landed on the backs of his legs. With a cry he landed hard on his back. He was up in an instant though; you definitely spent as little time on the ground as possible.
Not that it mattered; Kakashi kicked him square in the chest and he fell down again, completely winded. He rolled and hopped up to his knees and got a kick in the chest as compensation. He landed, hard, on the ground. That last one hurt like hell and the mokuton user was already in pain on practically every part of his body. Tenzou made a small effort to get up, then realized that would just be asking for senseless punishment as there was no way in hell he could keep fighting, so he fell back down again. It's not like he thought he was going to win this match, anyway.
Kakashi stood beside him and looked down at him, his hands on his hips.
"You still look conscious, Kouhai."
Tenzou just lay there, panting for a moment.
"Barely." Was his answer.
"You give up already?"
The mokuton user didn't understand why his captain was goading him. He was CLEARLY finished.
"It...has nothing...to do with giving up, Sempai..."
"If you stop fighting, you are giving up. It's the dictionary definition."
Tenzou wondered what exactly Kakashi wanted to get from this. Did he want to beat Tenzou unconscious? Or did he just want to see how far he could push him? He decided the best way to deal with Kakashi was to try and be smart about it.
"Fine, then I'm giving up."
Kakashi was silent for a moment. Tenzou gave himself a proud point; clearly, his captain wasn't expecting that response.
"I don't remember saying you could do that, Kouhai. Stand up."
...What?
"You never said I couldn't, Sempai." Tenzou responded with uncertainty. Kakashi wasn't being serious, was he?
"I asked you how long you could go for; you said until you were unconscious. There's no point in saying things if you don't mean them, Shodai. Get up, please, and let's continue."
Tenzou was just...he didn't even know. He was slightly hurt, if he was honest with himself. Kakashi knew how tired he was. His captain could see that he had barely been able to stand up; so why was he doing this? Was Tenzou being punished for something? Maybe...maybe his captain was disgusted with him.
Well. Fine.
Tenzou took a deep, calming breath and rolled onto his side. He winced; shit, that was the side he took a powerful punch to. He propped himself up and slowly climbed to his feet; sore all over and still panting heavily. When he was standing and steady he turned to face his captain. The brunette tried to study Kakashi in an attempt to understand his thought process but he could not tell what his captain was thinking at all.
"Ready?" The copy-nin called.
"Obviously not." Was Tenzou's response.
Kakashi sprang forward again and Tenzou was amazed that he managed to block his captain's kick and dodge his punch. The moment was short lived as Kakashi easily flipped around and kicked him with the opposite leg. It landed right in the small of his back and Tenzou stumbled forward, grunting in pain. He turned quickly, though, just as scared at this point of exposing his back to Kakashi as he would be to an unknown enemy. He was right to; Kakashi went for a clean kick and swept the mokuton user's right leg out from under him. The brunette fell to his knees, clenching his teeth at the impact, and looked up just in time to block another kick from the copy-nin that was aimed at the top of his shoulder. Tenzou quickly grabbed Kakashi's leg and used all of his remaining strength to spin the surprised jounin around and slam him into the floor.
Kakashi landed hard, and Tenzou clung to his leg, knowing it was an awkward angle and if he held Kakashi there he could...well. He wasn't sure what he could do at this point; he was finished and he knew it.
Suddenly, an idea came to Tenzou. Kakashi wanted to go until he passed out? Fine. He could do that.
The almond eyed shinobi flew through his hand signs and he heard Kakashi gasp beneath him.
"MOKUTON!"
A wood cocoon encased his captain, trapping him to the ground. Tenzou actually felt his remaining chakra sucked out of him and into the earth, and the last thing he registered as he passed out was another Kakashi rushing out from behind the building to catch him as he fell.
Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Tenzou blearily opened his eyes. Everything was kind of...gooey and hazy. There was almost no point to having his eyes open at all. He closed them again. His mouth felt really, really dry; like he hadn't used it or opened it in a long time.
He waited patiently for a minute or so before he tried to open his eyes again. Well, that was better. He was staring at the ceiling, and so far it looked like the ceiling in his room. He glanced down; he was definitely in his bed. Those were the standard issue sheets of all the rooms in the ANBU ward, and he could see his mask hanging on the chair next to the nightstand.
He tried to sit up, but his entire body felt like lead.
He definitely had chakra exhaustion. Well, obviously; that had been the goal. Slowly, his spar with his captain came back. He didn't really know what to think. He wasn't sure if Kakashi ACTUALLY wanted him to fight until he passed out, or if he just wanted to push him a little harder before he gave in. Or, maybe he was a twisted fuck and he enjoyed pushing people around and abusing his power.
Tenzou tried to calm his anger. He had seen a new side to Kakashi lately, and this wasn't it. Part of him couldn't believe Kakashi would act blatantly cruel, but another big part of him asked him to try and fucking explain this shit then.
He heard someone enter the room and prayed to anyone who would hear him that it wasn't Kakashi.
"Heeey, Rockstar! Glad to see you're up."
THANK YOU THANK YOU!
He tried to respond but all that came out was a croak. Genma walked up to his bed and sat on the edge of it, grinning down at his friend, his senbon curving up into the side of his mouth.
"Yah, you look like shit bud. Here, I brought you some water for when you woke up."
A glass was placed gently into his hand and he gripped it. Genma helped him sit up just enough so that he could down the entire glass of water and not spill half of it on himself.
He sighed when it was finished and licked his lips. "...Thanks." He felt a tinge of relief when his voice worked properly. "How long have I been asleep?"
"Almost 24 hours." Was Genma's grave answer.
Oh shit.
"When...when is the mission?"
"Tomorrow morning. We're ah...we're not sure you're gonna be fit to come with us, bud."
Tenzou felt his entire stomach clench into itself and then ram into his throat. Oh...fuck no. He couldn't miss a MISSION for this.
Genma saw the horror in his teammates face and he sighed, placing his hand on the bed ridden shinobi's shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. We'll let you sleep for the rest of today, and we've even got a med-nin coming in to give you a bit of a chakra boost. But...if she deems you unwell, you gotta stay here. We've already spoken around and found a possible replacement, though, so there's nothing to worry about."
NOTHING to worry about? Spoken around? What exactly were they telling people? "Oh, he's too tired from PRACTICE so we need someone to replace him. Boo Hoo."
Tenzou covered his face with his hands. He didn't even have words.
"Tenzou. Look at me."
The mokuton user lifted his hands and turned to gaze hesitatingly at Genma. His friend looked serious.
"This is not your fault, okay? You shouldn't have been sparring in the first place, really; but, the point is I saw you try to give in. I don't know what the heck Kakashi was thinking, but he shouldn't have pushed you when you were so low on chakra."
Tenzou was shaking his head before Genma had even finished speaking. "I...I could have avoided this. I was being stubborn. He...he insisted we "go until I pass out", so...I...passed out."
He was so embarrassed. Maybe if he'd just held on for a LITTLE longer, Kakashi would have ended the match and he could have hobbled back to his room. Instead he had to go and...well. Whatever.
Genma's mouth was carved into a hard frown. "I don't know if I would have acted any differently if I was in your shoes, so I wouldn't blame yourself. Me and Gai were just thinking of intervening when we saw you keel over."
Tenzou turned away, frustrated. This was so stupid.
Genma sighed and patted his friends shoulder again. "Look, just try to get some more sleep, okay? You're a tough bastard so I'm sure you'll pull through for tomorrow."
Tenzou smiled at his friend. "Thanks, Genma."
"Hey, no problem." He got one more light pat before Genma stood and left the room.
Tenzou let out a loud, aggravated sigh. He turned around and lay on his side, closing his eyes.
Honestly, if he had to miss out on a mission because of something as utterly petty and stupid as this he was never going to live it down.
He fell asleep in a stew of anger and confusion.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Slowly, Tenzou felt his eyes opening. The room was instantly clear, vivid and bright. Right, this was already better. He lifted his arm and found it was fairly easy to move. He bent his legs and sat up in bed; not bad. He didn't feel like 100 bucks or anything, but he also didn't feel like a sack of shit.
He turned to see if there was any water in the room and froze in shock.
Kakashi was sitting in a chair next to his bed. He was watching him.
They stared at each other for a few seconds before Tenzou realized he had no idea how long he'd been asleep for. He instantly panicked.
"Wait, what day...what time?"
"We haven't left for the mission yet." Was Kakashi's response.
Tenzou was so relieved he fell back onto the bed. There was still hope, then...
Once his anxiety had simmered down, he turned his head to look at Kakashi again. His captain was still watching him silently.
Suddenly, Tenzou was annoyed. He didn't know why Kakashi bothered being there if he wasn't going to talk. The mokuton user sat up and threw back the covers. He'd try and stand; if he could stand, he should be ok for the mission.
"I...wasn't expecting you to do that, Tenzou." Kakashi spoke suddenly, looking slightly ashamed and a whole lot of other stuff that the mokuton user couldn't pinpoint.
The brunette regarded his captain with annoyance. "What exactly were you expecting, Kakashi?"
The copy-nin glanced down. He didn't seem to have an answer.
Fine, whatever. Tenzou didn't want to hear it. What was the point of Kakashi apologizing only to turn around and do whatever the hell he wanted anyway? He might as well just save it.
Tenzou took a deep breath and stood slowly. He grinned; he could stand!
Then, the whole ground seemed to tip over and Tenzou's head swam so alarmingly that he fell back onto the bed gracelessly. He groaned and put his face in his hands, riding out the intense wave of dizziness in blissful darkness.
When his head settled, he slowly lifted it. Kakashi was gazing at him intently, his expression strong but unreadable.
"Tenzou, it isn't the end of the world if you have to sit out one mission."
The mokuton user tried really hard not to glare. He was sure he failed.
"No, not usually. But this is a ridiculous reason."
Kakashi seemed affected by his words.
"Tenzou...I knew what I was doing. I wasn't going to hurt you." He breathed, his words soft but his gaze penetrating.
Umm. Little late to tell him that.
"Sempai..." Tenzou started, rubbing his temples. "You go out of your way to be threatening and overbearing, and then you are surprised when I take you seriously?"
Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck. "Most people...tend to know what to expect from me."
"I have been on this team for a week, Sempai."
"Yes...well, you just fit in so well, I always forget that."
Tenzou was actually surprised at how sincere that statement was. It touched him...a lot more then he wanted. But he was still angry.
"Sempai, I am having a hard time understanding you. You were bullying me; there is no other way to describe it. I was exhausted and you insisted we train; that's fine, on missions you are in all kinds of conditions when you are forced to fight. But I told you I was done; I could barely stand, and you made me get up. If I hadn't used my mokuton, how much longer would you have kicked me around until you deemed me beat up enough for your satisfaction? I ended the fight because I refused to leave that in your hands; at that moment, I didn't trust you."
Kakashi rose from his chair suddenly. He was looking down at the ground and Tenzou noticed that his fists were clenched.
"You are staying behind on this mission; Sparrow will be your substitute."
Without another word or glance, he left.
Tenzou stared at the door, his mouth hanging open. He didn't think it was possible to understand a person less then he understood Kakashi.
More importantly...
He'd been ordered to stay behind. He couldn't believe his team was going to go on a dangerous stealth mission and he would have to stay here...and what? What the fuck was he supposed to do?
He was so frustrated he got back into bed and put his pillow over his face.
Was this what it was always going to be like? Kakashi treating him like dirt one moment and compassionately the next? Tenzou didn't know how much of that he could handle.
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Hope ya'll liked! :D