Of all the stories I've written for Naruto, this is definitely my favourite. I really liked Zaku's character in the anime and really wish he didn't have to be such a jerk. Team Dosu really struck a chord with me. I know a few of you feel that way too, otherwise you wouldn't be reading! I love fanfics where the sound three actually survived and helped Kohona defeat Orochimaru.
Chichi - father
Hahaoya - mother
o.O.o
Chapter 9
Ah Fridays: the conclusion of one school week that signalled that another would soon begin. Zaku spent the first two periods (Numeracy and Literacy) studying trigonometry and syntax. He spent the middle two periods (Music and science) playing guitar and copying down notes on cell biology. He spent the final two periods (Humanities and study) reviewing the group paper on the French Revolution and completing his homework tasks.
He caught up with Kin and Dosu outside their lockers after the bell rang. "So… are you two still into karate tonight?"
"Hai!" they chorused.
"The four-thirty class right?" Kin asked.
"Be there a little bit earlier so you can stretch. We don't spend a lot of time on warming up but I'll see what Sensei Jiraiya wants to do. Oh, and it costs three-hundred yen per class so bring the money."
"I can't wait," Kin enthused. Dosu merely smiled behind his bandages. Zaku felt a stab of concern for the other boy because if he remembered correctly, Dosu only got money from walking dogs. If he didn't have the money and his hahaoya refused to lend it…
"I'll be there." Something about Dosu's grin made the urge to grin back irresistible. So Zaku grinned back. He slung his back over his shoulder and skated through the horde of schoolkids, all excited for the weekend. His weekend wouldn't be very interesting, as usual, but with Utako to come home to they weren't completely boring.
With earphones in, he murmured the lyrics to Imagine Dragons (he liked the band even if he couldn't understand them because they spoke English). "I'm only a man with a candle to guide me. I'm taking a stand to escape what's inside me. A monster, a monster, I've turned into a monster, a monster, a monster, and it keeps getting stronger." He liked the emotion in the foreign words, the pain and longing hidden in each line and the unsung words expressed in the music. It was something he could identify with.
He skated across the road, narrowly avoiding a car that refused to slow for him, and kicked the back of his skateboard so it flew into his hand. Zaku switched off the music and entered the Day-care. Haku was out the back today, comforting a crying child, so Zaku signed Utako out, grabbed her and waved once so the older man knew he was there. He then skated home, changed into his gi and grabbed some food for Utako, and skated to the dojo.
"Hey Zaku, nice to see you finally show up!" Jiraiya joked when Zaku kicked off his shoes and entered the dojo.
"I know right? It's not like I'm ever late." The teenager carried Utako to her cardboard box and set her inside with his schoolbag. "Is Tsunade coming today?"
"Hai, she said she's becoming a regular on Friday's. Ready for class?"
"As ready as I'll ever be."
"Shugo!"
All the children for the three-thirty class ran to the centre of the mats and hurried to line up. Zaku walked among them, putting them in order of rank, before taking his usual place at the front of the line.
"Shomani," Jiraiya called, "rei." The class bowed to the front.
"Sensei-ni," Zaku called and they all faced Jiraiya, "rei." The class bowed to Jiraiya and chorused: "Onegeshimasu."
"Alright, everyone move to the back and do five laps!"
The class was a relatively calm one compared to some classes Zaku had done before. Some classes had him aching the next morning from doing too many push ups or having to stay in shiko dachi too long. The name Chito-Ryu stood for '1000', and multiple times Jiraiya had made them do one-thousand punches or one-thousand kicks. It got extremely difficult to keep up the pace in the last hundred because he was so close to the end but it wasn't over yet.
Dosu and Kin came in together ten minutes before class started, clad in shorts and a t-shirt (for Dosu) and tights and a singlet (for Kin). They stood at the edge of the mats and stretched uncertainly – Zaku had to fight a snort at the ineffective stretches they tried to do. They weren't even thinking about their ankles and wrists and those needed as much preparation as the legs.
The three-thirty class finished and Zaku joined them, a slight sheen of sweat coating his face. "Nice to see you could make it." He grinned, fuelled by endorphins. "Just pop your money in the box over there, Sensei Jiraiya will collect it after class."
"What are you, like, his star pupil?" Kin asked.
"He does favour you."
"I'm not his star pupil. I just help out a lot." Zaku glanced at the clock and moved over to Utako. He had two minutes before the next class and there was time to feed her. He pulled a container of blended vegetables from his bag and started to spoon-feed the sleepy baby. Give it an hour and she would soil her nappy.
"Shugo!" Jiraiya shouted. Zaku cursed and hurried to put the lid on. Someone tapped his shoulder.
"Hey," Tsunade said (where had she come from?), "I'll do this, you go to class."
He didn't have time to think about it. "Thank you." He handed over the container and spoon and ran onto the dojo mats. Dosu and Kin stood uncertainly and he took them to the end of the line where the white belts were. This class had older students, with a green-belt girl who was older than Zaku. He was still the most senior. This time he didn't stand at the front of the line, but stood in between the class and Jiraiya since he was a leader (or Senpai) and wasn't actually training.
Jiraiya cast his eyes over the eight students before facing the front. "Seiza." The entire class (Dosu and Kin a little confusedly) knelt down, folded their feet beneath them and placed their hands on their laps. "Mokuso." Zaku knew that his friends would be confused at the term but would quickly realise they had to close their eyes and begin meditation. Seiza before class was designed to calm and prepare him for the next hour of karate.
He sucked in a deep breath and released it slowly. He could hear Tsunade murmuring quietly to Utako to get her to eat the food. His sister gurgled at the new face and he fought the urge to run over and grab her from the box. Focus.
"Mokusoimei." Zaku opened his eyes and peeked at his friends through his peripheral vision. They blinked uncertainly but Dosu seemed more comfortable than Kin. He'd done Chito-Ryu before, after all. "Shomeni, rei." Jiraiya bowed to the front and his class followed.
"Sensei-ni, rei," Zaku said. Everyone faced Jiraiya and bowed.
"Onegeshimasu."
Jiraiya stood and gestured to the class. "Stand up." They did. "Alright, Zaku, lead the class through a warm-up. You got ten minutes."
Zaku took over his senseis place and faced the class. "Okay, just jump up and down, get that blood flowing." Everyone jumped. "Jump forward and back. Side-to-side. One leg forward." Now they were in basic seisan dachi, with one leg in front of the other and hands held up in a relaxed sparring pose. He made them swap sides after a ten-count.
"Arms around." They windmilled their arms forward for ten counts before doing it backwards. He made them do the splits, spend thirty seconds in shiko dachi (horse-riding stance) and stretch their arms in multiple directions. Neck stretches were always his favourite and it felt good to crack his neck.
Then his ten minutes were up. Jiraiya swapped with Zaku and cracked his knuckles. "Okay Zaku, I want you to spend twenty minutes with the new kids teaching them basic punches and blocks, some stances and if you have time, front kick and side kick." He and Zaku bowed to each other and Zaku went over to Dosu and Kin.
"Why hello there," Kin said sarcastically. She was already panting just from the warm-ups. "This is what you do every Friday afternoon."
"No, normally I'm home by now." He ushered them to the back corner so Jiraiya had plenty of room to practice kata with the other six students. "So put your feet together, toes and heels." He led them through the six basic stances – toes and heels together, toes out heels together, toes and heels parallel, toes out even more, heels out and toes turned in with knees bent, and toes out and knees out in horse-riding stance. Then, in seisan dachi (the fifth stance) he led them through basic chudan zuki (body punch), jodan zuki (head punch) and gedan zuki (groin punch).
"This seems easy enough," Kin said.
"Wait until you get higher," Dosu sighed, "and they make you use hips."
"Exactly, you're using your arm to punch right now. When you develop your technique more you'll be using your hips and core to punch. It makes the punch a lot stronger." He'd never had to explain it before but he hoped it made sense. If Kin did decide to start karate she'd understand. Karate was something that she had to actually do to understand, once she'd gone past the surface and begun to see the subtext underneath.
He then showed them basic jodan uke (upper block), soto uke (outside block), uchi uke (inside block) and gedan barai (lower block). Dosu was remembering all the stuff from when he was younger and picked it up quickly, but Kin still struggled. He couldn't expect her to be perfect on the first go.
After blocks, he took them through seisan dachi and shiko dachi stepping. The first lap of the dojo he just had them stepping, but the second lap he made them add punches for both stances. That only took fifteen minutes, so he had plenty of time to show them mae geri (front kick) and yoko geri (side kick). The first time Kin attempted a side kick she fell over and Zaku fought a laugh at her furious blushing.
"That's not funny." She got to her feet and resumed her stance. Zaku swallowed and cleared his face of laughter.
"Yame!" Jiraiya called. Twenty minutes were up already? It hadn't felt like twenty minutes. Zaku, Dosu and Kin bowed to one another and moved to join the other students. Jiraiya grinned and clapped his hands together. "What do you all say to some jumping kicks?"
The class cheered and lined up in front of the three black punching bags hanging from a concrete wall. Zaku went first to show everyone how it was done, running to the bags and leaping into the air, planting a vicious front kick on the bag that sent it swinging. Dosu and Kin gasped at his raw power.
"I didn't know you were that strong," Kin gaped.
"Years and years of karate," Zaku shrugged.
They went from jumping front kicks to partner work. Jiraiya disappeared for a few minutes while Zaku led the class through reverse punch. They would stand with one leg forward and twist their hips so their back hand would punch their partner. It allowed Kin to understand just how important hips were, as she found she couldn't punch without hips. The other students listened to the blue-belt simply because he was the most senior in the class and he liked it. He liked that they listened and followed his instructions without protest. He felt almost… accepted.
When the hour was almost up, Jiraiya came back and ordered them to line up. He led them through some warm-down stretches and decided against Seiza.
"Shomani, rei." They bowed to the front.
"Sensei-ni, rei," Zaku called. They bowed to Jiraiya. "Arigato gozai masta."
"Senpai-ni, rei," Jiraiya said. They bowed to Zaku. "Utagani, rei."
They bowed to one another. "Arigato gozai masta."
Jiraiya clapped his hands together. "Have a good afternoon!" The class dispersed and Zaku, Dosu and Kin wandered off the mats as the next class took over. Zaku was pleased to see that Utako was still in her box, but he could smell her soiled nappy. She was sitting up and grasping the edges of the box in an attempt to pull herself to her feet. His heart ached.
"That wasn't bad," Kin grinned, pushing stray strands of hair away from her sticky face. "I think I'll be coming back next week."
Zaku bent and pulled Utako into his arms. "The dojo is open every day, you can come any day you want. I just come on Friday's because it's when I don't have work."
The girl checked the clock on the wall. "I told chichi I would be home at six, I should get going." She smiled warmly at her friends. "Thanks for making this an interesting afternoon, I had fun. I'll see you both on Monday." They exchanged waves and she slipped on her shoes, grabbed her bike from outside and left the dojo.
Dosu rubbed the back of his head. "So…"
"So?"
"Are you busy tomorrow?"
The question took Zaku off guard. "Um, I have work in the afternoon, but other than that…"
Dosu scuffed the wooden floor and lowered his voice as the next class went into Seiza. "I was wondering if you might… uh… want to come to the hospital with me. I have an appointment for my face and it'd just be better if someone was with me. I can shout lunch."
Zaku didn't even hesitate. "Hai, I'll come." He grinned. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't?"
The look on Dosu's bandaged face tugged on his heartstrings. His eyes sparkled like the ocean during sunrise and his smile was infectious, causing Utako to giggle and reach out to him. If the admission of friendship caused this happiness, Zaku wondered what would happen if he told Kin she was his friend too.
"That's great! I'll uh, where will we meet?"
"What time's the appointment?"
"Ten o'clock. Do you want to meet outside the hospital?"
"Hai, hospital at ten, and afterwards you can shout sushi or sashimi. I don't know what kind of shops they have in the city." As opposed to the suburbs. Zaku hadn't had sashimi in years. He wrinkled his nose as Utako's nappy made itself known.
"Sounds like a plan." Dosu nodded and readjusted his bandages. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Zaku stayed for a minute to gather his things while Dosu left. He slipped on his worn shoes and skated home. Five-forty. Plenty of time to get to the bank and pay his bills. He threw on jeans and his hoodie and knocked on old Sarutobi's door.
"Why hello Zaku, what can I do for you?" the old man asked. Zaku held out Utako, gross nappy and all.
"I just need to duck out to the bank for a minute. Would you be able to watch her?"
Sarutobi sniffed the air. "She needs a nappy change."
"Hai, I'll do it when I get back."
The old man laughed. "Don't worry, I've changed plenty of nappies, especially recently with Konohamaru." He held out his arms and took Utako. "She'll be safe with me. Get to the bank before it closes."
Zaku smiled gratefully. "Thanks for this. It won't be a permanent thing, I just can't take her to the bank and let them see her, or they'll start asking questions."
"Off you go."
Zaku returned to his apartment and knelt in front of his wardrobe, pulling up a plank of wood to access the false bottom. He grabbed out his plastic Zip-lock bag with ¥14,500 yen inside and tucked it into his pocket. With that safely secured, he took his skateboard and headed for the bank.
Akatsuki Bank, Buy and Loan was where all the locals went to manage their financial transactions. Zaku had never seen any of his classmates at the bank, only older people, but that was because everyone else had parents who did everything for them. He entered the automatic doors and shivered as air conditioning enveloped him. Bright white and dull grey surfaces, a thin layer of dark grey carpet. Wide glass windows. Those red velvet ropes that three people lined up between. Zaku joined the end of the line, feeling very scruffy when comparing himself to the trio wearing business suits. He unconsciously attempted to comb his hair with his fingers in a doomed attempt to tame the untameable locks.
The line moved up. A well-dressed woman with long dark hair and pale eyes moved into position behind him. A woman with wild brown hair moved into place behind her. Zaku was at the front of the line. A banker waved him over.
"Hello, how may I help you?" the banker asked. Zaku spared a glance at his nametag.
"My name is Zaku Abumi, I have a billing account that I want to put some money through."
Itachi typed into his computer, long, elegant fingers moving gracefully and decisively. "I see your account. You have fourteen-thousand and five-hundred yen due today, that's rent, water and electricity for your apartment."
Zaku's weekly expenses came up to ¥16,900, including buying food and little extra things for Utako. He earned ¥17,600 from working at the music shop (thank you Suigetsu) and was able to put a little bit spare away every week. Quite often he tapped into those savings to buy shampoo, conditioner, washing detergent and the like, and as a result the savings never were much. ¥10,000 at most but it was still good back-up money.
"Sounds about right." Zaku handed over the bag of money. Itachi tipped it all out and gave the bag back. He processed all the notes and coins in two minutes and nodded.
"Your transaction has been approved. Your next billing is due in two weeks." Itachi smiled woodenly. "Thank you."
"Have a good evening." Zaku turned and left the bank happily. It had never been his favourite place, too cold and leeching for his liking. It sapped his energy just by being there. He skated home, eager for a quiet night, and wondered what he would make for dinner. Probably a sandwich, he wasn't feeling inspired.
o.O.o
Zaku closed his apartment door behind him and blew a raspberry on Utako's arm. She didn't smell bad as Sarutobi had changed her nappy and bathed her, and she giggled enthusiastically at her brother's antics. His heart squeezed with love and he snuggled her close.
"I love you," he whispered. She stuck her finger up his nose and he pulled back, spluttering.
Dinner. Shower. Homework. A spot of cleaning, wiping down the toilet, shower and kitchen benches. It was only eight-thirty. He sat on the old leather couch and gently rocked Utako, humming quietly.
"Did hahaoya ever love us?" he mused. He'd tried to avoid the thoughts but they were inevitable. Speaking out loud seemed to help. "She raised me for ten years and ran off somewhere, then I got you. We're only half-siblings, you know?"
"Baba…"
"You're almost seven months now. Man, I don't even know your birthday. I guess I'll have to guess." He sighed and continued rocking her. "Hahaoyas are supposed to love their children unconditionally. It's their job to be there for us and help us through life. I've been forced to wing everything and just hope that it'll go okay." He bit his lip. "I have no idea what I'm doing, Utako. I'm fourteen. I have zero skills in raising babies. Everything I know, I know from library books. What if I do something wrong? I can't give you everything a baby needs. Hell, I'm not even legal yet."
She rolled over and lay her head in his lap, yawning. Zaku noted with interest that one small strip of white appeared on her bottom jaw. Her first tooth. He sighed and stroked her head. No matter what his hahaoya had put him through, Utako was worth it. The indecision, the fear, everything cancelled out when he heard her laugh. To hold another human being's life in his hand… it was scary. But he did it out of love. If he didn't love her, no one else would. All the other kids his age were getting into relationships and throwing around the word 'love', but he could say it to Utako and mean it. He thought he'd loved his hahaoya, but he didn't. He couldn't. Utako was different. She was the reason he worked so hard and couldn't wait to get home in the afternoons.
To think of himself as a chichi and a brother, it was strange, but Utako was his. Their hahaoya couldn't even be called their hahaoya, considering the way she'd abandoned them. Zaku never had a parent to look up to, but he would make sure his sister did.
She dozed off in his arms and he carried her to her crib and tucked her in. She looked so sweet, so guileless, as she slept with the moonlight peeking past the curtains. Zaku turned off the living room light, closed his bedroom door and curled into bed. He lay there for a moment before getting back up and bringing Utako into bed with him. He held her small body close and her warmth seeped through his t-shirt to touch his skin.
"Goodnight Utako…"