FREEZE! WARNING! STOP! IF YOU DID NOT CHECK CHAPTER 9 FOR THE WHOLE PAGE AFTER IT WAS UPDATED, DO SO NOW! IF YOU DO NOT YOU WILL HAVE MISSED ALOT OF THE SCENES AND NOT UNDERSTAND SOME OF WHAT IS GOING ON!
Hello one and all, I plan on making this page better than the last. I realize that I made a few mistakes on the last one. One being that it was late. Two being that it was rushed (even if it was for your sakes.) Finally, I kept you waiting a LONG time and I shouldn't have done that to you, the fans.
Jumps up with his giant generic stamp, looks at it and tosses it to the side and instead pulls out a bed sized mallet stamp and smashes it on the story.
Disclaimer:
I do not own Naruto the anime or manga, any of the names assosciated with Naruto, or any thing of that nature. I am simply an over imaginative fan of Naruto, and I'm not responsible enough to be an owner anyway since I'd probably abuse that privilege.
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"And you lady? What will you have to drink?" The woman asked Tenten after having taken Neji's order. "I'm in the mood for something sour and sweet. I'll have some lemonade." She said with a smile. "Okay, do you know what you would you like to eat?" She asked. Neji nodded and looked to Tenten. "I would like to have some meatbuns and rice." She said, announcing one of her favorite foods. Neji grinned. "I'll have the same thing." He said. The lady wrote down the order and left with a grin. That had been the second man she had met this same night that had ordered the same thing as his girlfriend. "I'll be back as soon as I can with your meals."
"So how long have you had this planned, Neji?" Tenten asked with a grin. "Not long, I gave this idea to Lee a long time ago to do with Sakura but he never did. I decided it was a good idea to try myself." Neji admitted.
Tenten's grin grew into a smile as they waited. "So how is Hiashi? I know you practice with him alot, but I don't remember actually seeing him with you." Neji smiled. "Hiashi has been training me to follow after Hinata's example. Ever since Hinata took over the clan and brought everybody together with that new Key Seal to replace the old one." Tenten quirked an eyebrow. "Key Seal? I don't remember hearing about or ever seeing a new seal."
Neji nodded as he smiled and removed everything covering his forehead to show that the seal that used to be there was missing. Tenten's eyes went wide. Neji closed his eyes as he focused and a bird shaped seal appeared on his forehead. "This seal removes the previous seals in the place and removes the Byakugan on death like the Caged Bird Seal. It can be activated on will and can be removed only by the Hyuga Clan and Hokage." He said.
"I owe Hinata everything. Hinata doesn't like being the clan leader even though she is more than capable and is planning on naming me the new head of the clan once she finishes settling a few other things among the family. That would make you the girlfriend of one of the most powerful clan leaders in Konoha." He said. "No."
Neji looked like he had been kicked in the groin. "What!?" Tenten smiled. "I wouldn't be the girlfriend of the new head of the family because I plan on being married to him before that happens." She said with a sly grin. She must have had some inside information from a source good source.
"So who told you about that part of the plan?" Neji said, recovering from the turn down. "Hinata, of course. Who else could I learn about the plan to get married before you became the clan's leader from? I did say I hadn't seen Hiashi." She said with a wink.
Neji sighed. He knew Hinata had trouble keeping secrets from her friends, but he made her promise not to tell anybody. "Don't worry, it's not Hinata's fault, I pried it out of her. I know a few of her weaknesses, including information on a certain blond-haired future Rokudaime that she appreciated too much to hold back any secrets." She said with an air of pride.
"Really? What kind of information? And do you mean secrets?" Neji said starting to get worried about what she could have learned. "Well for one, Naruto's not as dumb as he seems. He knows Hinata likes him and he can't come up with a way to show he cares about her, too. I overheard him trying to find something to say to her in one of the empty training areas while he was practicing some of his more advanced jutsu. Ever since I made it a habit to pass by closely on my way to the Hyuga's complex. You wouldn't believe half the stuff he says." She said with a devious grin.
Neji just shook his head. "I guess if he's dumb enough to say it loud enough for you to hear it. He should expect somebody to hear him." Neji said. "Wrong again, I think he knew I was there since everytime I passed by he spoke up a little louder. I snuck up once to see if it was an accident or not, and he was almost whispering. Once I stepped on a twig he spoke up a little more so I could hear him. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was planning on it." Tenten corrected.
Neji grinned. "For somebody who spent most of his childhood not knowing anything, he seems intelligent enough." He said wondering how the blond had been able to grow so much. "Makes you wonder how long he actually has been that way." Tenten said. "I mean as far as I can remember, everytime I've seen him fight he used his shadow clones pretty well, remember the chunnin exam? Or that time he got into a fight with Tsunade when they were both drunk? He's always used the clones the right way." Tenten added.
Neji's eyes went wide. "Y-you're right! Maybe he has gotten wiser over the years, but he's never really been that much of an idiot with the shadow clones unless he's angry or rushing." He said as the realization dawned on him.
Tenten just giggled. "I guess this means we should give him more credit than we used to, eh Neji?"
Neji sighed in defeat. "I guess so. Here comes our food." He added as he saw the waitress come out with their food. "Mmm, smells good even from here." Tenten stated breathing in deeply with her nose. But before I eat, I need to go to the bathroom." She said getting up carefully. Neji nodded and got up as well. "You don't need to follow me in Neji, I'm a big girl." She said, poking fun at the Hyuga's expense. "I have to go, too." He said trying not to let the embaressment get to him.
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"Now this is more like it! Look at this thing, it's huge! You're even supposed to climb into it!" Said Kohaku as she skittered around the puppet looking at all the nooks and crannies of it, 'oo'ing and 'ah'ing at all the details and mechanical pieces that she was going to be taking apart and putting together.
"There's enough room for more than one person, so we can both work on it at the same time. Which side would you like to start on?" He said as he walked up to the salamander shaped puppet. "I'll work on the left side. I'm used to going across machinery left to right so that I can remember where everything goes later on." She said as she stood up after examining the puppet's under belly.
"I think this is the first time I've actually taken a good hard look at this guy. I mean I've used him for a few years, but he was usually nothing more than a shield." Kankuro admitted as he moved to the right side of the puppet and began cleaning the parts. "I guess he might be put to good use fighting too, but I never considered him that way."
Kohaku laughed. "Well you might be suprised, some shields are as offensive as they are defensive." She said as she took a few pieces apart on the inside in the way of the leg joints. "Hey, Kankuro, does this piece look familiar?" She said as she looked close at a piece.
Kankuro turned around just as she turned around to look towards him and both heads made a collision. "Owie! Ow ow ow!" She grasped at her head as she winced in pain. Kankuro wasn't as vocal, but still gave a grunt of pain. "Are you okay Kohaku?" He said after he shook away the dizzy feeling.
"I'm a little dizzy, but I think I'll be fine." She replied rubbing her head. "Let me have a look at it. I have some wrapping and healing ointments in a little box near the front of this guy that I use in case I'm hurt during a fight, so we could put something on it if you want." He said as he went to retrieve the said box.
Kohaku nodded and took off the leather cap with the instruments attached to it and let her hair down just as Kankuro turned back towards her. He froze and stared at her. She blushed when she noticed his stare. "What's wrong? Do I have something on my face?" She said as she started putting her hands on her cheeks and forehead.
Kankuro finally broke out of his daze and shook his head. "No, it's just that you look pretty cute looking like that." He said trying to return back to his usual composure. He figured she would think he was just hitting on her or something. Instead the unexplainable happened.
She half-tackled and half-hugged Kankuro grinning ear to ear, nuzzling his chest. Kankuro never really had much experience with women in this kind of situation, so he hugged her back, a blush barely shining through the paint on his face. She started to nuzzle his chest even as she spoke. "Thank you. Nobody's ever said anything like that before. Everybody always thought I was weird and didn't want anything to do with me."
Kankuro was at a complete loss for words. He just kept his arms around her, having completely forgotten about the medical box he had dropped or the grease and various mechanical liquids on the two of them. It wasn't until her forehead touched him and she yelped that the two finally parted.
Kankuro picked up the medical equipment and pulled out a bottle as well as a couple other items. "Okay, just sit down on the stool over there and I'll take a look okay?" He said. Kohaku nodded and sat down on the stool with a light above.
"Your head's pretty tough, I didn't think most puppeteers were that strong physically." Kohaku said as she twiddled her thumbs waiting. Kankuro rolled his eyes. "Just because we use puppets doesn't mean we are completely incapable of fighting hand to hand. Some of us train ourselves physically more than we do our puppets because most combatants tend to think that same thing." Kankuro explained.
Kohaku nodded in understanding as Kankuro came over to look at her head. "Let's see... Maybe this is a bit worse than most people could do. I guess we're going to have to put something cold on it to keep the swelling down. Do you have any ice packs in your freezer?" Kankuro said as he examined the giant purple spot on the girl's head.
"I think so, do you think... Er... Nevermind." She said as a blush quickly rose to her cheeks. Kankuro noticed this and couldn't let his curiousity stay put. "Do I think what?" He asked. She blushed even redder. "Do you think you could... kiss it better?" At this point she turned beet red and hid her face. Kankuro shook his head with a smile, but the smile faded and he kissed her forehead. Suprised, Kohaku looked up to see him walking towards the refridgerator to get the ice.
She sat there on the stool looking dumbstruck for minutes on end until the reality of it hit and she blushed bright red. "That was the first kiss I've ever gotten!" She whispered to herself as she sighed contentedly while blushing madly. "I wonder if I can have more 'accidents'." She continued as she thought up various plans to try to seduce Kankuro.
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Sakura had gotten up from the table to go to the bathroom after having a few drinks while waiting for their food. "I'll be right back, okay, Lee?" She said. Lee nodded with a grin and said. "I too must use the restroom." He said as he moved his chair out and stood to head to the men's restroom.
After finishing 'business' Lee went to wash his hands and saw somebody walk in. "Greetings sir, I--What!?" He had looked up to see a pair of wide, pupiless, white eyes staring at him. "L-Lee? What are you doing here?" He said, already knowing the answer but needing to ask anyway. "I brought Sakura here for our date, what about you?"
"I brought Tenten..." Was all he said. "Tenten/Sakura did not happen to..." They both said at the same time as both of their faces turned pale. "Oh no."
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"Lee brought you here, too?" Tenten said as she looked at the shocked, pink-haired girl. Sakura nodded. "He even bought me this dress since I didn't bring anything with me to wear." Sakura said as she saw the girl across from her grinning like a cheshire cat. "Neji did the same thing for me! I wonder if they planned on doing this at the same time." She said as the girl across from her grinned.
"So where are you sitting Tenten?" She asked having an idea come to mind. "I'm on the North East side of the building, how about you?" Tenten asked getting an idea of what Sakura had in mind. "I'm sitting on the South East side." She answered and they both grinned evilly. "Would you like some company? Possibly a double date?" Sakura asked. "I thought you would never ask." Tenten replied with a wink and they both left to their respective tables.
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The food had finally come along with drinks that Shikamaru had also put in the bag since he knew she would also be thirsty. He had gone for the tea approach since it would help calm the two of them down some. It would probably help them rest after the morning's events, preferably the troublesome girl who would most likely not appreciate being stuck in bed for the next day or two.
Temari had originally planned to put her hair back up, but could do so because the things she used to hold her hair up had gone missing, probably into one of the nearby drawers. At least she wasn't the only one dealing with hair problems since Shikamaru also had to deal with it since everytime he looked down it would fly in front of his face. It didn't matter though since it wasn't too much of a hinderance.
Shikamaru and Temari had been enjoying their game for a long time, each winning one then losing the next back and forth. "You know, Temari, ever since I've gotten here people have been talking about you and all kinds of things you've done around here." Shikamaru said after picking up the pieces for another game.
"Really? What kinds of things?" She asked wondering how much the boy as she grabbed her cup from the table to get a drink. "Like how you've saved the village once or twice, how you like to train out here every now and then, and how you talk about a guy you fought once in Konoha." At the last part Temari's eyes went wide and she lost her grip on the cup, thankfully Shikamaru was nearby to catch it easily without a mess since the contents had been ingested already.
"R-really? T-that sounds good." She said trying to hide the all too obvious nervousness. "If I'm right, I'm the only person who's ever 'beaten' you, although I did give up at the end of that fight." Shikamaru said trying to act like he didn't know who it was. "If I ever get my hands on Shiro, Kuri, or... well maybe not Yume since she could kick my ass anytime, but if I ever get my hands on the other two they're gonna be stuck in bed for a long time." She said as she came up with one way after another to get back at them.
"How much did they tell you." She asked the young man across from the board. "Enough for me to get the idea, even though I had already figured it out." Shikamaru said. Damn that boy for having a brain. "Okay, so maybe it was obvious I like you, but don't let it go to your head." She warned. Shikamaru already knew that she liked him or maybe even had a full blown crush on him, and that he actually did like her in return damn troublesome emotions, so what the village people had said was old news really.
Shikamaru grinned thinking of a way to take advantage of the moment. "So does this mean you're gonna try to kiss me while I'm asleep?" He said trying to make her blush. It worked for about half a second before she grinned evily. "Who says I haven't already, we've already slept together a couple times, remember?" She said winking at him.
He sighed his usual 'how troublesome' and moved his piece on the board. Temari just grinned while watching him fight off the blush. She reached to move her piece and twitched when she moved into a position her body didn't appreciate. Shikamaru noticed and got up to help her back up. "Don't hurt yourself. I'll do it for you. What piece and where to?" He questioned as he moved his chair so he could move her pieces for her. Her face turned red at the embaressment of needing his help.
"Did I say I needed help, Nara?" She asked angrily. "No, but you needed it anyway, not sit back and answer me." He answered. She grumbled a few angry words under her breath but complied and answered. "Fine, the lance on your right takes your knight." She said as she pulled a pillow on top of her chest and hugged it as she laid on her side. "Are you sure you want to do that? Isn't it going to become 'too troublesome'?" Temari asked.
Shikamaru shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It's not so troublesome when I have good company." She stared at him in complete awe. Did he really say that? If not for the fact that she couldn't even get up, she would have hugged him and kissed him right there. As far as she knew, there was nobody else in the world he would have said that about. "It's your turn." Shikamaru said snapping her out of her thoughts. "Um, right, put that bishop down to the top right of your rook."
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I am sorry for this late late late update, but I am having trouble in real life. Getting a job, helping friends, trying to talk to loved ones, and overall getting my inner muse to listen to me for more than five minutes (fickle lil twerp, eh?) For those of you who don't know anything about shogi, I have a link here to a website that has online shogi. I played it for a long time with a silly grin on my face as I beat the computer ten times in a row (BOOYAKA) and had fun with it. Think of it as Eastern Chess. I'm gonna change from weekly or biweekly updates to monthly or three weeks (whenever I get it done) since I obviously can't keep going with the seven to fourteen days thing I asked. I hope you don't think less of me for it. Anyway, I look forward to hearing your reviews, and even your flames (you know somebody desperate when they are even looking from criticism) so write one up when you get the chance, until next time!
Online Shogi: www. pathguy. com/ chess/ Shogi. htm