The Purity of White Chapter 10, a naruto fanfic

Okay, since I just realized I didn't disclaim for any other chapter, I'll do it right now.

I don't own Naruto. Imagine that.

Chapter 10

"It's like I said. I've found a place for Maya to stay. It's a mountain at the edge of Hi no Kuni," Tsunade said. "I have a friend there, by the name of Ashura. Like you, Maya, he has a surgically implanted Byakugan. And, he also has a Mangekyo… and… Okay, let me start this over. Ashura was the last of a clan from the north, between the Hi/Taki and Hi/Kusa borders. They were well known Katon users, and their Kekkai Genkai consisted of two things: One, being born with three eyes, and Two, being able to spontaneously combust and rise from the ashes anew, which is why their symbol was the phoenix. In fact, the legend surrounding their clan is that the first member of it was born from a goddess who consorted with a phoenix. How that explains the three eyes, I'm not sure. In any case, Ashura was born away from the other members of his clan, which is a good thing, considering they were all wiped out a few months before his birth. His mother left him to fend for himself when he was eleven or twelve. It was then that he was captured by Orochimaru. He had all three of his eyes replaced, his left with a Byakugan, his right with a Sharingan, and the one in the middle of his forehead with an eye that came from a clan that died off in the last century. It was the union of this clan and the Hyuuga clan that brought forth the Uchiha clan, and their eyes were used for genjutsu and the like, and it's where the Sharingan's ability to copy techniques came from," Tsunade explained.

"So in other words, he's a perfect teacher for Maya, seeing as he's had to cope with learning to use the Sharingan and the Byakugan," Ino said. Tsunade grimaced.

"He sounds like a good teacher for her, doesn't he? Well, the problem is, he's not the most upstanding example of a role model. He has drinking parties all the time- in fact, that's how I first met him. Among the higher-ups, he's famous for his information. His mountain is a place where no one is allowed to use violence, and lots of people: Bingo-book level, Jiraiya and I, even Kages know him. He's where Jiraiya gets a lot of his information, seeing as Akatsuki drinks with Ashura too. Ashura's specialty is getting people drunk and getting information out of them. Maya will be safe there because even if Orochimaru himself came there, there wouldn't be a single thing he could do to take Maya back," Tsunade said.

"However, he is the GAYEST thing that has ever walked the earth. His catchphrase is 'banged him too'- if you ask him about ANY guy, that's what he's likely to reply. He can drive even the sanest person completely nuts, drinks like a fish, and he's a spoiled brat. But my hands are tied. He's really the best person to take care of Maya, and he sent me a letter asking for a new shrine maiden. So it's his own fault," Tsunade shrugged.

"Are you really sure it's the only way?" Ino asked. Maya had been staying with her for three weeks, and she'd become kinda attached.

"Unfortunately, yes," Tsunade shrugged.

"It's okay, Onee-chan," Maya smiled. "I've had to deal with worse." Then she looked thoughtful for a moment. "Oh, I never got to ask you this, Ino-Onee-chan, but what does 'keeping yourself pure' mean?" she asked innocently.

Ino fell off her chair, and Tsunade broke the cup she was holding. Tsunade dabbed herself off and then asked "Maya-chan, do you know about the birds and the bees?" very slowly. Maya replied with a blank look. Tsunade tried again "Did you ever ask your parents where babies came from?"

"Okaa-san? Otto-san?" Maya asked curiously. Taki and Yumi were sipping at sake and watching the full moon.

"Hai?

"Can I ask you something?"

"Anything, Princess."

"Okaa-san, you said that the woman who came to visit today had a baby in her tummy, but I thought that babies came from the hospital," Maya said.

Her parents slopped sake all down their fronts and never answered her.

"Um…" Maya said. "No, not really."

"Alright, if you're going to be living with Ashura, you're going to need all the facts. Okay, when people are attracted to each other, most of the time they start dating. As people get to know each other better, they want to be affectionate. Sometimes they hold hands, or hug, or kiss, or cuddle. But most people consider the ultimate expression of love to be sex," Tsunade said. Ino turned bright red. Did they have to discuss this in front of her?

"Sex?" Maya asked.

"Yes. Sex. Sex is when…" And Tsunade explained the process to her. Maya looked mildly interested, while Ino was looking for a rock to hide under.

"So then people have babies?" Maya asked.

"Not every time. It depends on how fertile the man is, and how fertile the girl is, and when she last had her period," Tsunade answered. Another blank look. Tsunade said. "Alright, let's back up. A girl is said to be getting her period when…" Tsunade told her about it.

"So that will happen to me?" Maya asked.

"Yes, sometime in the near future. What it means is that you are able physically, though definitely not emotionally, mentally or financially, to have a baby. So anyways, the likelihood of pregnancy depends on the fertility of the pair, when the girl is ovulating, and also the method, if any, of birth control. Because lots of people don't have sex just to have a baby, or wait until they are married. Some people have sex for pleasure. If that's the case, they use birth control. Birth control can be used in several forms. The most common is a condom," And Tsunade went off on a tangent about birth control.

"Now you also have to know about the other side if you're going to be staying with Ashura. Some men don't like women. And there are women who don't like men. Those people like other members of their same gender. This makes some people uncomfortable, but there is no reason to ostracize these people because of who they find themselves attracted to. Ashura is one of those people. He is a man who likes men. Men are able to have sex with other men, and women are able to have sex with other women, but it is simply for pleasure. It takes a man and a women to have a baby. These couples can't have children without adopting," Tsunade said. Then she went into the mechanics of relationships between people of the same gender.

"So is that about it, Maya?" Tsunade asked. Maya nodded. Ino thought that her face would never return to the same color.

"Okay," Maya said. "Thanks for explaining to me, Tsunade-sama." Then she asked bluntly "Have you ever had sex?"

"Yes" Tsunade said.

"Oh. What does it feel like?"

"It's kind of difficult to pin down, Maya-chan. If you really love the person, it can feel like being tickled. Kind of," Tsunade said.

"Hai." Maya said. "Onee-chan, have You ever had sex?"

Ino blushed "No. I have not. But that's not a question you should ask people, Maya-chan."

"Oh. Okay. Gomenasai," Maya said. Ino sighed.

"It's fine, kiddo," Ino said, trying not to let on that she'd learned a few things as well.

Neji walked in the door. Judging from the fact that his ears were slightly red at the top, he'd heard most of their conversation. He put down some clothes on the table and coughed uncomfortably.

"More sake?" a Geisha asked politely. Itachi nodded. She filled his cup, and he sipped it. "They say that there are three Uchiha left in Hi no Kuni, Itachi-dono. What say you?"

"Hn," Itachi replied.

"If I'm going to pretend to be nice enough to ask about it civilly, you can damn well answer me. So are the rumors true? Did you leave another relative alive?" the Geisha asked.

"I don't pay for your company to be interrogated, Yuki-san," Itachi replied. Yuki smiled widely, perfect ruby lips parting into a malicious grin.

"I don't remember you paying me, Itachi-dono. I simply remember you showing up bedraggled at this tea house, begging for me to entertain you. So tell me about this niece of yours. You truly are despicable, giving up one of your kin to him." She glanced at him coyly.

"You don't have to try your tricks with me, Yuki-san."

Yuki batted her eyelids. "Whatever do you mean? I'm simply making conversation."

"It doesn't matter," Itachi replied gruffly. "She'll be dead soon anyways," then he set down his cup. "So how's your family?" Deep ruby eyes glared at him icily. "Oh, that's right…" he finished dryly.

Yuki refilled his cup slowly and carefully, making sure that the sake brimmed over the edge. The slightest shudder of his hand would send it slopping down Itachi's cloak.

He picked it up carefully and managed to get it to his mouth without spilling a single drop.

Yuki smiled nastily.

"You know, they've begun to call Yuki no Kuni Haru no Kuni lately, what are your feelings on that?" Itachi asked. She frowned.

"It's mortal folly. Yuki no Kuni was made for my kind. It was never a place for mortals. It was to be our place. And now it's warming. It was the Princess's mother, one of us, who enabled her fool husband to create a spring for this place. Everywhere, we are hunted. We shed our tears and the land is consumed by the snow once more. And so it goes."

"How poetic of you. A 'person of the arts' indeed," Itachi smiled.

"Don't pretend you know anything of the arts, Weasel," Yuki said, face perfectly composed. "Or of Geisha. Or, indeed, of women," she poured more sake.

"But I know of the beauty of blood on snow."

Yuki's eyes flickered. "And that, I suppose, is the only reason I put up with you, Itachi-dono."

"Eek! I can't do this! What made me think I could do this? EEK! Don't throw me back into the shark infested waters of DATING! Make it go away!" Ino squealed. Sakura rolled her eyes and flicked Ino in the back of the head.

"OW!"

"Don't be a piglet," Sakura scoffed.

"Are you kidding? You're super strong! It hurts!" Ino replied as Sakura yanked the comb through her hair again.

"Hey. Do me a favor and calm down. There. Perfect. Now turn around and let me do your makeup."

Ino turned around. Sakura compared four different lip glosses, trying to find the perfect color. She found the right one and slathered it on. She did the same thing with the eyeshade, and then gently brushed on blush.

"There. You look great," Sakura said.

Ino's hair was down, and she was wearing a shiny purple Chinese-style dress with butterflies on it. Her lips were a soft pale pink and she had a hint of purple around her eyes. She did look great. But she said, "Yeah right. I tried putting my hair down around him before.

It failed."

"Aw, shut up. Admit I did a good job," Sakura grinned and gave the thumbs up sign.

"Yeah, yeah. You did good," Ino admitted grudgingly.

"I know. Now get out of here," Sakura smiled.

"You're not coming with me?" Ino panicked.

"Hell no. You're a big girl now, you can do it. I'm not going to baby you anymore," Sakura said firmly, shoving her out the door.

"Traitor! Big forehead girl!" Ino yelled from the other side of the door. When Sakura didn't respond, Ino stomped down the hall.

Because Ino's apartment was now off limits, she was supposed to meet him at Ringo. She smoothed her hair down one last time and then set off.

She was ten minutes early when she arrived, but Neji was already waiting. He saw her and his lips twitched in what was almost a smile.

They walked into the restaurant together, though neither was brave enough to take the other's hand. There was a huge fountain in the middle of the floor, with a statue of a water nymph languishing in the middle.

"What?" Ino asked, embarrassed. She'd been spacing out instead of listening to Neji.

"I said, you look pretty," Neji coughed.

"Oh, thanks," she smoothed her dress to hide her blush.

He hadn't bothered to wear anything besides his normal clothes, but he still looked good. She'd have to ask him how he got his hair so shiny. She didn't realize that she was making him feel uncomfortable by staring until he started to fidget. Then she looked away.

A girl in a beautiful kimono walked up to them and asked for the name their table was under.

"Yamanaka Ino," Ino said, maneuvering herself so as to block the girl's view of Neji, who she was currently drooling over. The waitress glared politely and ushered them to a table. Neji pulled the chair out for Ino, which made her feel awkward. The last time she brought Shikamaru here, not only was he too lazy to pull out her chair, he was too lazy to pull out his own. So he sat on the floor until Ino pulled his chair out for him.

"Thanks," she said quietly. She pulled on her dress a little. Neji sipped at his water. He was feeling awkward too. He'd wanted advice from someone. His teacher was out of the question- Gai had been completely incoherent all week, shouting about the youthful spirit of love, and Lee wouldn't know good dating advice if it danced naked in front of him and bit him on his green spandex clad butt. Hiashi would have flipped, Tenten was busy announcing that he wasn't gay, and he wasn't about to go near the subject with Naruto. He couldn't ask Shikamaru, of course- "Hey, Shikamaru, care to tell me how to romance your ex-fiancée?". That's when he thought about Hinata's team. Kiba was too much of a playboy for Neji's tastes, but Shino had managed a couple of dates.

"So… can you give me your advice?" Neji asked.

"I will impart to you the three most important dating secrets of all time," Shino had said very seriously. Neji leaned forward to hear them.

"Rule number one- treat her as if she's the only girl that matters. This includes two parts. You have to make sure you don't look at any other girls. And I mean any other girls. If Miss Konoha herself walks in the room, you just look at your date. Don't praise any other girl. If you have to mention another girl, make sure you talk about how troublesome she is, especially if you have to meet her. You say something along the lines of 'I know it's bothersome, but I got roped into promising to go'. And you also have to complement her. Girls love being complemented. But stick to complements about what she's wearing, her eyes, and her hair. You have to feel out what's okay to complement and what isn't," Shino explained seriously.

"Rule number two- If you make promises, you can't break them. You have to be a man of your word and earn a girl's trust. And if you have to break a promise, you have to swallow your pride and simply apologize. If they want an excuse, they'll ask for one, but otherwise don't offer one. Just say sorry and admit it was stupid of you. And then give her time to cool off. And, especially, don't promise to call her if you won't."

"Rule number three- the most important rule of all. Now I doubt your relationship has progressed this far, but keep this in mind for the future. If a girl tells you her feelings, and you reciprocate them, then you have to say so. That means that when a girl says 'I love you' you have to say 'I love you too', not 'ditto', not 'I know', not even 'me too'. You have to say the whole thing. But this only applies if you actually do care for the girl. If you lie about your feelings, it always ends very badly," Shino finished.

But Shino hadn't mentioned anything about awkward silences. Somehow, Neji doubted that any silence was awkward to Shino. He cleared his throat.

As he was about to say something, the waitress came back to the table. He tried not to look at her, but as she was… er… flaunting herself, it was hard not to. He ordered quietly and looked away. He saw the waitress glare at Ino before stalking off.

When she thought he wasn't looking, Ino stuck her tongue out at the waitress's back. When she saw him watching her, she shrugged and smiled.

"So…"

"So tell me how Hanabi's doing. She's Chunin now, right?" Ino asked.

"Yes. She made Chunin in the last test. She's doing fine. She trains much of the time," Neji said.

"Oh. So she's really serious about her training?"

"Yes. In her way. I think that she's somewhat resentful that she was born second. I think she believes that she would be a better head."

"You know, everyone makes that mistake," Ino said, sipping at her drink.

"What mistake?"

"Of underestimating Hinata. I can read between the lines. Hanabi thinks that Hinata is weak. So does everyone. They all generalize. Hinata's delicate. That doesn't mean she's not strong. I think it's just that instead of expecting her not to yield, they should see she's more suited to bending to avoid breaking. It's like the grass. The willow looks down on the grass, but when the strong wind blows, it's the willow that breaks, not the grass."

"Where did you hear that?"

"Oh, what, I'm not allowed to make up wise sayings or something?" Ino teased.

"I'm not going to answer that."

"Why not?"

"Because I heard about the time you were insulted by Kiba and he ended up in a dress."

"Which time?"

"It happened more than once?"

"Yes. There was that time he insulted my hair, and the time he insulted my intelligence, and the time, of course that I used his body in my oh-so-evil scheme to hook up Naruto and Hinata," Ino grinned wickedly. "The Shintenshin has many uses."

"My point exactly," Neji's lip twitched into the almost-smile again.

By the time their dinner came, they were deep in conversation, much to the chagrin of the waitress. She set down the plates and then stomped away. You had to appreciate her anger- it's hard to stomp in a kimono.

"-and then she ended up doing this really brilliant spin, and she managed to catch it, but since she was standing on the table, she got her foot twisted in the table cloth and sent everything flying. There was a chopstick embedded in the wall three inches from my face." Ino finished.

Neji looked amused. Ino looked at his expression and smiled. This was the best first date she'd ever had. And mind you, she'd had a few. The waitress returned to slam the check down on the table and stalked off to another table.

They ended up going Dutch and then taking a walk around a nearby park. They were almost the only people there, except for a brown-haired girl sitting by the fountain and playing a flute. They sat down to listen, and the girl caught Ino's eye. She smiled and winked and put a finger to her lips, then started playing again.

"Do you know her?" Neji asked.

Ino shrugged. "I feel like I should, but… I can't place her" she thought for a moment. "Oh, right, she's a waitress at the barbeque Asuma always took us to."

"Oh."

They listened for a few more minutes. Then Ino looked in the other direction. "Hey! Do you smell that?" she asked.

"What?"

"It's baked potatoes! Look, there's a cart up there!" Ino said, grabbing his hand without thinking. She pulled him up to the cart and said to the man pushing it "Two potatoes, please!"

"We just ate," Neji rolled his eyes and nearly smiled. Ino paid and gave Neji a potato. They started to walk away when someone called "Ino?"

She turned around to see Chouji. "Hey, Chouji! What are you doing here?". Neji nodded politely at him. He had a lot of respect for Chouji after the they went on the Sasuke-retrieval mission.

Chouji looked down and kicked at a pebble. Ino noticed that he was holding two baked potatoes. She raised an eyebrow. He looked away. "What are you doing here, Ino?"

She jerked her head at Neji and raised her pinky. Chouji nodded his head and said "Me too," and then waved goodbye. As soon as he was out of earshot, Ino smiled.

"Aw, Chouji's gotten all grown up on me. I can't believe he has a girlfriend. How cute," she elbowed Neji. They wandered around the park for a little while longer, and then Neji walked her back to the Hokage's tower, where she was still staying.

"Thanks for coming with me," she said, pausing at the door. She beamed at him. She caught his eye with a questioning look and moved towards him, and then moved back. Definitely too much to hope for on the first date. Ino sighed. She turned to open the door.

"I had a good time too," Neji said. Then very lightly and respectfully he planted a kiss on her forehead. She flushed and gave him a peck on the cheek. Then she waved "goodnight" and opened the door. He walked away. She waited until she was on the second floor before jumping up and pumping her arm in a victory dance.

"KYA! YES! YES, YES, YES! OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OHMIGAWD!" she squealed. Then she skipped to the room she and Maya were sharing.

"Onee-chan? Is that you?" Maya asked groggily when Ino shut the door. Ino grinned and nodded. Maya rubbed her eyes and sat up. "Did you have a good time?"

"Mmm. Yep. I had a very good time." Ino smoothed Maya's hair down and tucked her back in bed. Maya smiled sleepily.

"I'm glad. Tsunade-sama left the details of the mission to Ashura-sensei's house over there, on the desk. She said to look them over. We're supposed to go at the end of the week."

"Okay, Maya. You get to sleep." Ino sat down at the desk and started to read the mission debriefing. Kakashi was leading it. She and Neji were coming along and so was…

"Sakura?" Kakashi knocked on his former student's door. She opened it.

"Kakashi-sensei? What are you doing? Here, come inside," Sakura opened the door. He held out his hand.

"No, that's not it. The Hokage has assigned you a mission. You're to report to her office immediately."

"Oh, okay," Sakura said. "What type of mission?"

"It's an A-rank. You'll be going with me, another Jonin, and a Chunin. It'll take three weeks to reach our destination. You're going to want to pack right now" Kakashi said. Sakura nodded and ran back to get her things.

Half an hour later they were at the Hokage's office door. Sakura yawned and stretched. Kakashi tapped on the door.

"Come in," Tsunade said. Kakashi pushed the door open slowly. As he did, Sakura dropped her pack.

It was like Sasuke was back. Maya had taken to dressing in the same type of shirt, the same white pants, as Sasuke had. At the right angle, it was like seeing him again.

"Good morning, Sakura-chan!" Maya grinned.

Ashura: OMG WTF GIRL PARTS D:

Smack Quiet, fool. Your intro isn't until next chapter. Hello readers! It truly makes me happy to know there are so many of you out there. And you all better read the sequels! Anyways, I feel the need to explain a few things…

1. Itachi in the teahouse: He does seem like that type of guy, ne? The type to visit teahouses and chat with Geisha and stuff. Anyways, this whole little exchange takes place in Yuki no Kuni. And I shall fill the few of you who read the A/N on what the hell was going on. When Itachi was roughly fourteen, he wandered into Yuki no Kuni. He got lost in a blizzard and stumbled onto Yuki's teahouse, and he became her patron after he kept visiting. But they aren't really what one could call cordial, oh no. Yuki wants Itachi dead. Because he reminds her of her lover who went crazy and killed their daughter. Why Itachi continues to visit is a mystery. Probably to annoy her. Who knows… Yuki ain't mine, by the way. She belongs to my sister. I just put her in here to encourage my sister's as of yet unwritten fanfiction, about Itachi and Yuki's bitchy conversations. Yuki knows Kisame too, and she likes him better than her so called "Patron". Itachi never ends up paying her… cheap bastard…

2. Please, for the love of god, don't take my dating advice seriously… It's all fairly sound, but please have a little common sense as to where you get your advice… I'm just about as bad as Lee in that area… maybe a little better, but not much.

Thanks for reading. Now review!