Naruto was laughing.
Ami was laughing too.
"Shut up," Minako grunted out, annoyed at being their source of amusement.
"I-I-I c-can't!" Naruto hollered, clutching his stomach.
If looks could kill, Minako's glare would have successfully ended the whole world. As it stood, her glare only managed to make Ami's laughter dissolve into more subdued giggles. Small mercies.
Minako blinked as Naruto pointed at her hair, highlighting her singed appearance and how her hair somehow became a funky afro.
"What happened to your hair, sis?" Naruto asked, grin filled with mirth.
Minako defensively crossed her arms, "Fuinjutsu failure," she muttered, annoyed at herself.
She didn't have a natural talent for Fuinjutsu, despite being half-Uzumaki, go figure. She blamed whoever it was that placed her in Minako's body in the first place. She wasn't used to working hard. Which was ironic, considering Naruto, her twin, was a firm believer in hard work. Don't get her wrong, she didn't believe in talent either.
Why?
Because she had never thought about it before.
To her, if someone was good at something, they were good at it. Whether they had worked hard or not was simply irrelevant to their success. Of course her belief came to bite her in the butt. Because now she was supposed to work hard, wasn't she?
"I don't get why you're suddenly interested in becoming a ninja Minako," Ami finally spoke up.
Naruto nodded in agreement and in unison they both tilted their heads to the side.
Like they were puppies.
"I thought you wanted me to become a ninja, Naru," Minako carefully said, wanting to prevent any sibling rivalry Naruto may or may not be feeling. "Besides, it was...Kabuto who told me to try my hand at Fuinjutsu."
She wanted to slap herself for sounding vulnerable when saying that traitor's name.
She hated that it still stung that Kabuto left without saying anything.
She hated how Naruto's eyes softened.
But, she couldn't deny that she was relieved that Naruto would probably see her interest in Fuinjutsu as her trying to hold on to Kabuto. Which it wasn't. She just needed Fuinjutsu as a solution for future events. Like when Gaara releases Shukaku in eight or so years. Or for when she'd convince Naruto to abolish the Hyuga Branch family in the future, which meant that she should be able to remove the Hyuga seal.
Not to mention, Minako was fascinated by Fuinjutsu. It was like calculus. It was familiar, a way for her to hold on to her past life. Yes, calculus was fucking hard, but it's the price she was willing to pay to stay connected to her old world.
Who knows? Fuinjutsu may even be the key to her returning to her old world, if she ever felt like it.
"Mina..."
Who was she kidding?
It's been what, almost two years? Her body was probably in the dirt by now, wasn't it? Her family couldn't afford to keep her in a comatose state if she was in the hospital, so she doubted suddenly waking up in a hospital was going to happen.
"Mina!"
Minako blinked as Naruto grabbed her wrist.
"...what?"
She frowned at Naruto and Ami's concerned looks.
She was okay, damn it.
"Let's go to the park!" Naruto exclaimed with a grin, probably trying to cheer her up. "Sasuke-teme, Hinata-chan and Neji's going to be there too."
Ami shot Naruto a look, "Minako always heads to the library around this time. It's basically her routine. I'm surprised she hasn't read everything in there already."
"Actually," Minako smiled, "I think I can skip one day."
"What about Shisui?" Ami suspiciously asked.
"What about him?"
"Yeah, what about him?" Naruto backed her up.
He still hadn't opened up to Shisui, much to Minako's amusement.
"I don't see what Shisui has to do with me going to the park with my two favorite people in the world."
"But," Ami frowned, "Aren't you two friends?"
"Eh?" Minako stuttered out. "He just likes annoying me."
"But you let him!" Naruto exclaimed, "Which means you're friends?"
Why did that sound like a question?
Choosing not to say anything on the matter, because in the end she didn't know if Shisui had any ulterior motives, she simply deadpanned. "Do you want me to go to the park or not?"
"Of course!"
Minako grimaced at how happy Naruto sounded. Perhaps he was feeling neglected by her constant library visits? No, it couldn't be, could it? After all, she only spent like three hours a day in that library. The rest of her day she always dedicates to Naruto when she didn't have to go to Koharu's.
"Fix your hair first though," Ami jested, causing another round of laughter.
Rolling her eyes, Minako walked to the room she shared with Naruto. She grabbed her backpack which was filled with a book, writing materials, two notebooks and of course, money. Though, maybe she'd need to get a map of the village eventually.
'Food for thought,' she decided as she grabbed her and Naruto's hairbrush.
She'd brush her hair on the way to the park.
.o0o.o0o.
"Maybe I should start growing my hair out," Minako mused as she and her companions neared the park.
"No way! We're twins, Mina."
"I think it's a good idea."
Minako ignored Ami and Naruto as they started arguing, as if they had a say in what she did or didn't do. Honestly, by now they should realize that Minako wasn't going to bend over other people's opinions. She'd consider them, and ultimately ignore them.
Instead of wasting her time trying to diffuse an argument, she let her gaze wander in search of Neji, Hinata or Sasuke. She was sure where one was, the others were, considering she and her companions were at best twenty minutes late.
Minako didn't even consider the possibility that Neji, Hinata or Sasuke could be late. They were clan kids, for crying out loud. And she wasn't even being biased, considering Neji had offhandedly mentioned it one time when they were watching the others play ninja.
"Hey! Dobe! Minako! Ami! Over here!"
Minako's attention snapped towards the far left corner of the park, where she could faintly make out Sasuke, Hinata and an older woman.
'Where's Neji?'
Usually, she would leisurely walk as if she had all the time in the world, but right now she was worried about Neji. She's been worried about the boy since a month ago, when they had put the blasted mark on his forehead, branding him as if he was a slave.
"Hello," she politely greeted, quickly glancing at Sasuke and the woman before looking at Hinata. "Where's Neji?"
"U-um, he's g-gotten a fever a-and Uncle decided t-that it would be b-best he stays i-inside."
Minako didn't really feel any better. The supposed fever could actually mean that one of the Main House members may have done something to Neji. If that were the case, the Hyuga compound would go down in flames as she smiled in satisfaction.
"I see," Minako reminded herself to smile at Hinata.
Sometimes, she had to try really hard to remind herself that Hinata didn't have any part to play in what had happened to Neji. She would never blame someone for their parents' sins. But, it was still frustrating that Hinata was so oblivious to everything. One day, when Hinata was older, she'd get why Minako always fret over Neji more than Ami or Sasuke.
Today just wasn't that day.
"Minako, hey!"
Minako focused on Sasuke who was smiling at her.
It was sometimes disorientating to remember that Sasuke was and would have continued being a happy child if not for the Uchiha massacre. It only served to motivate her desire to do something about it.
"Sasuke," Minako smiled back. "How's the Shuriken practice going?"
She asked because she recalled how Sasuke had mentioned starting up some training the last time they had hung out, which was a week ago. Naruto and Ami did socialize more than she did after all.
Sasuke's expression turned into a sulk. "I suck at it."
Minako shook her head and patted Sasuke's head. "Same," she sighed, recalling her Fuinjutsu failure.
"Practice makes perfect, kids."
Both Minako and Sasuke turned to look at the woman.
The woman, to put it lightly, was beautiful.
She was also Mikoto Uchiha.
'...oh fuck, we weren't supposed to meet for a few more weeks. My plans have been ruined. Just my rotten luck! And I'm not even properly dressed. Heck, I'm not even mentally prepare to socialize with an adult.'
"I know mom," Sasuke beamed.
Minako was on auto-pilot as she bowed in greeting, "Uchiha-sama, it's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for waiting for us."
"My, how polite. Uchiha-sama is my husband though, so you can simply refer to me as Mikoto-san. I'll have to thank you for taking care of my son, Minako was it?"
Minako nodded, "Minako Uzumaki," she confirmed.
She didn't see any visible reaction on Mikoto's face.
Good.
"Wait...what are you doing here Minako?"
"That's rude, Sasuke."
"H-he d-didn't mean it l-like that, U-Uchiha-san," Hinata meekly piped up.
Minako allowed herself a sheepish smile. "I ditched Shi-chan today."
"He's gonna sulk about it all week," Sasuke grinned in amusement.
"Hinata-chan! Teme! Pretty lady!"
The trio turned to look at Naruto and Ami who had finally caught up.
They watched in various degrees of amusement as Ami flicked Naruto's ears and loudly chided him on manners and how Naruto's lack of manners were the reason Minako should just grow her hair out so no one mistakes the girl for Naruto.
Once they were done, Ami forced Naruto in a polite bow.
"Hello, it's pleased to make your acquaintance, Uchiha-san."
Minako smiled in approval.
She knew she was friends with Ami for a reason.
"U-um, guys?"
Everyone looked at the shy Hyuga heiress, who Minako suspected was more shy that usual due to Mikoto Uchiha's presence. She couldn't really blame the poor girl. Even she felt a bit intimidated by the woman for some reason.
"N-Neji-nii-san i-isn't here..."
"So?" Ami bluntly asked.
"M-Minako-san is.."
Realization dawned Sasuke. "We're five."
"Nah," Minako quickly said, sounding casual. "I'll just sit this game out."
Naruto frowned in concern.
"Hmm," Mikoto thoughtfully hummed, interjecting into the conversation. "Minako-chan can help me with some groceries and keep me company while you all play."
Naruto brightened at the idea, "Really Uchiha-san?"
Mikoto nodded with an amused smile. "Really, Naruto-kun."
"You're way nicer than Te...Sasuke," Naruto hastily corrected himself at Ami's scowl.
The scowl immediately morphed into a nice smile. "We'll leave our Minako in your care then, Uchiha-san."
.o0o.o0o.
Admittedly speaking, Minako was scared of Mikoto.
Not because the woman seemed scary or anything, goodness no, the woman was in fact very affable.
She was scared of slipping up. Of saying something she shouldn't know. She wasn't afraid of slipping up near people like Shisui or Koharu, simply because their conversations never slipped into uncharted territories.
With Mikoto Uchiha, things were very different.
They had no established bond. No established standard conversation.
When there weren't any standard conversation, which leads to awkward silences, Minako rambled. She'd like to pretend it was because she was now half-Uzumaki, but honestly she's always been that way.
"In conclusion," Minako nervously gulped, "The consumers, which are us, tend to think that we pay less because of the odd numbered price."
"That is very insightful of you, Minako-chan," Mikoto complimented. "I''ll make sure to buy fruits at Ichiya's instead of Azuchi's next time. I'll have to tell the others about this, you're a real lifesaver."
Minako merely nodded at the compliment before racking her mind for any other conversation ideas. She majored in Economics and minored in journalism for crying out loud!
Why, oh why, didn't she major in something else instead?
Well, at least she didn't major in technology-based studies, otherwise she really would have been more screwed in the Naruto world.
Oh, maybe she could talk about the lack of technology advancement?
"I don't mind that you and Naruto-kun are friends with Sasuke."
Minako's violet-colored eyes snapped towards Mikoto, who was giving her a soft look. "E-excuse me?"
"Shisui told us you like think too much, Minako-chan."
"Shisui..?"
"He talks about you. Too much, sometimes. You've really caught his fancy."
Minako's eyes widened.
She hadn't expected Shisui to go around talking about her at all. Somehow, she had went about her friendship with Shisui the same way she had with Kabuto. As if it was some sort of affair, some sort of secret that was theirs and no one else's.
But...Shisui was different than Kabuto, wasn't he?
She should really stop comparing them.
Suddenly, someone was breathing down her neck.
"I think Mikoto-san's even gotten tired of hearing how much I like your eyes, Mi-chan."
Minako yelped in surprise, earning a soft chuckle and an energetic laugh.
She turned around and glared at Shisui, "Don't sneak up on me!"
"I was here the whole time."
"The whole time..?" Minako felt a blush creeping up her cheeks.
That meant he had listened to her nonsensical ramblings.
"Around the time you started ranting about an imaginary line between cost and demand," Shisui teased.
"I knew you were a stalker."
"You wound me Mi-chan."
"Yeah, well, truth hurts Shi-chan."
"You were the one who ditched me, Mi-chan."
The casually remarked accusation made Minako pause.
She finally noticed how winded Shisui looked.
"You were looking me?"
It couldn't be.
He probably just finished training.
"Of course, I thought something had happened to you, miss I-always-follow-routines."
Minako had the decency to look embarrassed, "S-sorry."
Shisui simply sighed. "Just warn a guy next time. Jeez, you really know how to make people panic, Mi-chan."
"It makes us even."
"Eh? How does that work?"
"You listened to my rambling, right? I said everything has a balance somewhere. I make you panic and you confuse me. So we're even."
"That isn't going to cut it, Mi-chan," Shisui evilly smirked.
"N-name your price then."
"You."
"My..." Mikoto trailed off, looking at the duo in interest.
"M-me?"
"Yeah. You're coming over for lunch at my place next week."
Minako rolled her eyes, "I can cook my own meals. Not a charity case."
She ignored the look Mikoto and Shisui shared.
"You're not," Shisui assured. "Everything has a balance, right? You've brought me breakfast a lot, so I'm inviting you to lunch to balance it out."
"No ulterior motives?"
"Aside from your sarcastic remarks?"
"So, I just have to suffer from your stupidity then."
Shisui grinned and slung an arm over Minako's shoulders, which was awkward considering her head barely reached his waist. She was like what, five? And he was at least ten.
"On to shopping with Mikoto-san!"
Minako didn't really know what to say.
Really.
Why was Shisui being so open with her in public? Didn't he notice the looks people were giving them? The sounds of whispering?
'Maybe he just doesn't care...'
The thought made her smile.
"Perhaps we get some flowers for your friend Neji," Mikoto mused, easily steering them away from where a lot of people were.
She decided then and there that she liked Mikoto.
.o0o.o0o.
Chapter End.
.o0o.o0o.
Author's note: I wanted this chapter to be longer, but...it just doesn't feel right for it to keep going. Anyway! I've started publishing this story on Wattpad as well, please support it there as well. (same username). Also, one more (long) chapter left before the Academy kicks in~!
Questions:
1. School-wise, which major do you think would be more useful to you if you ever get reincarnated into the Naruverse?
2. You can choose any Kage to train under (from whichever village), who would you choose and why?
