Ok update, hope its ok….*cries* the title for this chapter is so unoriginal that it hurts.


Chapter 11: A new 'friendship'?

Well this is embarrassing. That's all Nanako could think of as she laid on the floor by the school's baseball star's feet, her mouth opening and closing like a goldfish. What was Yamamoto Takeshi doing here? Without a word, she studied him, looking him up and down for signs that could possibly indicate why he was here. He was wearing casual clothes, they suited him well. In his right hand was a box, which he held attached to some string. In his left hand, was another box, bigger than the other one, but still held with string so it was easier to carry.

"Nanako-chan?" Her eyes flashed up to the movement of his lips, and then moved up towards his raised eyebrow; this is what knocked her out of her little study session of Yamamoto Takeshi.

Gasping loudly, she buried her face into the mat floor and felt like cursing. Staring at him like that will just make you look creepy, you stupid girl, her mind told her, and with this her cheeks flared up.

"H-Hey, you ok?" the boy above asked, and she looked up briefly to gasp again as he was leaning over her, closer than he was before causing her to squeak a little.

"Yeah I'm FINE!" God, she was almost yelling, this wasn't happening. Trying to distract herself from how silly she was being, she went back to thinking about why he was here in the first place.

Did Kenji know him? She hadn't thought Kenji would be one for socialising with kids very much, seeing as he seemed to loathe them, or torture them with really difficult exercises. Damn that man.

"That's good," the boy said, a rather nice and cheerful smile breaking out onto his face, which caused Nanako to blush for a different reason. So this is why the girls liked him…it was almost like a spell…did that mean Yamamoto was secretly a seducing wizard?

She smacked her head repeatedly on the mat covered floor, as she considered how stupid her thoughts were.

"Are you—

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" she insisted, her cheeks even redder.

"Nanako, what are you doing girl?" Nanako's head snapped over in the direction of her trainer's voice as it appeared out of nowhere, but she ended looking upside down, well as far as her neck could stretch backwards before it was inhumanely possible.

Two squinty eyes glared down at her and her once red cheeks blanched. She crawled forwards away from the man, and then climbed to her feet.

"N-Nothing!" she cried, her back straight in command as she prayed to god this would make sure she didn't get another scolding from her teacher; him and that broomstick of his was flipping lethal.

The man just tutted before he turned his attention to the boy in front, "Afternoon Takeshi."

"Afternoon!" the boy replied back happily, and Nanako raised an eyebrow. Why did Kenji seem to use a more pleasant tone with this guy?

"How's your father?"

"He's great thanks; I brought the costume like you asked. Can I ask what it's for?"

Costume? She wondered what they were talking about, and if so how could she get in their conversation, she felt a bit awkward standing on the other side of the room like a lemon.

"Tonight, I thought it would be nice to have it on display," Kenji said and the other boy smiled.

"Yeah, I think mum would have wanted that."

If it wasn't just her imagination the boy's smile dimmed then, and even though she knew it wasn't her place to ask, she couldn't help feeling curious.

"Ah, I was meant to ask you, where is a good place to set up a stand?" the boy asked, that smile relighting as he handed Kenji the box.

The old man took it gratefully and then pondered, his free hand scrubbing his stubbly chin.

That's when he turned to Nanako, beckoning her over with a finger.

"Nanako will you show you a good place, the girl knows this place well," the man said with a warm smile but Nanako almost scowled at this, it was clear Kenji was just too lazy to show the boy around himself.

"You will?" the boy's eyes seemed to light up at this, and it almost looked as if he was going to grab hold of her hands but she pulled them behind her back just in case.

"I guess," she said, attempting to put on her most cheery of voices but even still it didn't sound very amused.

"Lead the way Nanako." Before Nanako could walk herself an arm placed itself around her shoulders, leading her out of the shrine.


"Yup, this is a perfect spot; it will get noticed for sure," Yamamoto responded happily as Nanako showed him a place just below the steps leading up to the shrine itself. The fact that she was being praised actually made her feel a bit chuffed really, her face a little red thanks to the appreciation.

She watched as Yamamoto grabbed two free chairs from around the area and placed them down in the spot as if to stake his claim. He sat on one of them and leant back, releasing a happy groan as if to say thank god for the comfort of the chair.

So now she had found him a spot, she thought she should probably get back up them steps before Kenji scolded her, but then again, if Kenji didn't want her to dilly dally or be late, then why had he sent her off with Yamamoto?

Preparing to walk up the stairs, she felt her wrist seized and she looked over her shoulder surprised.

"Why don't you sit with me?" Was he really asking that? No one ever asked her to join them, unless it was her mother.

"Is that ok?" It was a silly comment but she asked anyways, giving him an anxious glance to see if he wasn't joking.

"Course'!" She found herself tugged down into the seat next to him, and she gave him another anxious glance as he grinned over at her, his fingers still wrapped around her wrist. Gently tugging her wrist free from his grip, she gave him a small uncomfortable smile, before resting herself in the chair.

"So, how do you know Kenji-san?" The boy questioned, seeming to not notice that he wasn't holding her anymore.

"Ah, well, I work here at the shrine," she answered honestly, reminding herself of her job, after tonight's festival it probably meant twice the cleaning, god damn.

"Really? Doing what?" He sounded genuinely interested, and friendly which caused Nanako to relax a bit more, her body reacting a bit more like her, meaning her seating arrangement got a little less lady-like.

"Cleaning, I offered, because it's such a beautiful place don't you think?" If anyone had looked at her now her eyes would have probably been sparkling with enthusiasm. The things she loved about the shrine most was the cherry blossoms, the fact you could see the whole of Namimori if you stood by the stairs, and not to mention the beautiful old building that was the shrine.

"It's nice to hear people say things like that, my mother used to say stuff like that all the time, took me here when I was a kid, we would stare at the sunset, her, me and dad," he explained, a warm smile spreading out on his face as he spoke and Nanako found herself smiling with him. Man, that smile of his was contagious, no wonder so many people liked him; part of her was rather jealous.

He leant back a little more, tilting his head over the back of the chair, giving Nanako a view of mainly his neck, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down in his throat as he went on to speak again, "Hey Nanako-chan? How come you don't come and see Tsuna very often? He is your cousin."

"Wha…urmm," well she was stuck there, she wanted to see him, she just chose not to, only when she was strong enough would be an appropriate time to show herself to Tsuna, then again, she was missing her cousin like mad, not to mention he hadn't even made an effort to come visit her. From what Reborn had told her though, the boy was most likely busy 24/7, "I just, haven't had time you know, what with work and school, ha-ha-haaa."

Her laugh sounded pathetically weak, and she watched as the boy's head turned. He was looking at her now, directly, his eyes meeting hers and he liked, well serious…which she thought was a bit alien on a boy of this calibre.

She wondered why he looked so serious, had Tsuna mentioned her? She doubted it, but then again, if so why was he bothered, why would he ask her? This was weird, felt almost like he was questioning her. Instead of more interrogation a hearty laughter erupted from the boy's throat, and the boy's previous serious look had disappeared, almost like it never had been there in the first place.

"Yeah, dad told me that Kenji-san can be tough on people, good man though," yeah Kenji was definitely tough, but she could least say he was a nice person though, even if he was constantly hitting her with brooms and what not.

"So what was it that Kenji had you deliver here?" Nanako asked, thinking back to the box she had seen Yamamoto give Kenji, which reminded her, what was in the box by his feet?

"Oh that, my mother's old kimono," Takeshi replied and Nanako knew once again her eyes would be gleaming. There were always kimono wearing characters in anime! She had never worn a kimono either, nor had her mother, her mother was more into western clothes thanks to her father.

"And that's going to be on display tonight? Can't wait to see it," she announced, obviously excited, this causing her to miss the little smirk on Yamamoto's face.

Noticing that she was fangirling, she snapped out of her acts and tried to distract herself by pointing down at the box by his feet.

"What's in there?" she leant over a little, poking the white cardboard box with a finger. The boy picked it up carefully and placed it on his knee. He then proceeded to untie the string, his fingers working quickly and skilfully to undo what looked like quite a difficult knot. If it was her undoing that knot, they would have been here for at least 2 hours…or maybe 7…screw that, more like the end of time.

Gradually and gently, he lifted the lid and she leaned over more to peek inside. In the box was three different things. On one side there were several chocolate bars, also a shaker full of hundreds and thousands, on the other side there was…sushi?

Strangest arrangement ever. Staring at it a bit more intently, she heard the embarrassing sound of her stomach groan for food; this was thanks to her mad dash to the shrine. The boy heard it too because without warning he picked a piece of sushi up and pressed it to her lips,

"Eat."

Yes, she knew her cheeks were red now. She was getting fed by a complete stranger…then again, one day he would be her friend, least she hoped. Parting her mouth slightly, she hesitantly took the bit of sushi from his fingers, attempting not to graze him at all with her mouth full of germs.

Chewing once, and then chewing again, she felt a delicious taste swarm around her taste buds.

"Oh gommmmmmm," she knew speaking with a full mouth wasn't a lady like thing to do, but this was godly. This piece of sushi was probably the most delicious thing she had tasted in her entire lifetime seeing as her mother couldn't cook, and when her father was around his cooking was better but not exactly fantastic.

Sad to be finished, she stared down at the other bits of remaining sushi, before quickly sneaking a begging glance at Yamamoto in hope for another piece.

The boy just chuckled, before picking another piece up and placing it near her lips again. Eagerly she snatched it with her teeth but then slowed her pace as she chewed.

Whatever was in this small combination of ingredients tasted so freaking good, even better than pocky, or chocolate cake. Then again it was a weird thing to compare it to.

Swallowing the last bit, she tried to be polite and not ask for another bit seeing as it wasn't hers, but she did need to ask where he got it from.

"Where did you get that sushi? It's like my taste buds are partying!" she explained not caring that she sounded completely ridiculous, even though her description of such a delectable treat was face palm worthy.

"You liked it that much huh?" the boy said rather pleased with himself, "It's my dad's, he runs a sushi restaurant, I help him make it."

"Really? That's awesome, I wish I could do something good like this too, I'm so useless…if you don't mind me asking, can I have another bit?" she said eying the box and then him again with a cheeky little smile on her face. The boy nodded and her fingers hastily entered in and out of the box, the sushi devoured in seconds.

"It's literally the best thing I've ever tasted, you would make a good wife," she said before hiding her face embarrassed as she saw the shocked look on the other's face making her regret her words,

"I mean husband! HUSBAND! Oh god! I'm so sorry!"

"HAHAHAAHAHA!" She jumped when the boy laughed exceptionally hard, throwing his head back over the chair, "Never in my life have I been called wife material, do you really think I would make a good wife Nanako-chan?"

Knowing he was laughing, she decided to take the joke further and nod repeatedly, "Why of course, much better than me, you can cook, what more would a man want?"

She winked and the boy just shook his head as he tried to hold in chuckles.

"You're strange," the baseball boy announced and she could only agree, well it wasn't like she was the sanest person on earth, she had green hair for starters and apparently to Kenji, her mother and several others, goggles weren't everyday accessories of a normal person.

"So I'm told, but what's so fun about being normal," she said confidently and then sat back a little amazed. She was acting like she had been best friends with this guy for years, and for some reason, it felt like a different type of friendship than what she had back in Shimon. This one was bubbly and talkative; the one at home was quieter but playful. Could she count this guy as a friend…then again, it was possible this guy was just being friendly without even caring, it just seemed in his nature.

"Nanako-chan?"

"Huh?" She blinked and saw the boy was looking her dead in the eyes sending a weird sparking feeling through her body.

"You seemed a little lost just then," he said, his smile causing that weird spark to appear again, she didn't like it.

"Well, it seems I have to be going now, can't keep Kenji waiting, or he'll get grouchy, it was umm, fun, yes, fun!" she mumbled, already starting up the steps, trying to hide her red face.

"Nanako-chan!"

Stopping, she turned and saw the boy still sat on his chair, the box on his lap,

"We should talk again sometime, it would be cool!"

Yup, she needed to get out of here before she said something completely stupid, it most likely being very girly and shoujo manga like.


"What took you so long?" She was greeted by Kenji's scowl as she headed back through the door, but she ignored him mostly and attempted to hide her silly blush.

"We had a chat, sorry," she apologised, hiding her face a little.

"You fallen in love with him yet?" the snide comment came and straight away she spluttered ready to protest.

"NO! NO! NO! NANAKO EUGUCHI ONLY LOVES MANGA! ANIME! VIDEO GAMES!" she squealed, shaking about her arms in denial over what the man was suggesting, her face going even redder than before, this causing the old man to smirk.

"Urgh, teenage girls these days, all you need to do is smile, and give them a good comment or two and bam they think you're the bee's knees," the man declared and Nanako frowned. That wasn't true! If she was going to ever fall in love then it would be with someone with either similar interests or like her favourite characters. But she didn't see any crazy, glutton, super detective or ninjas around wanting to be her boyfriend.

Then again, what was with all this talk about boyfriends! She wasn't going to have one! She was going to be an independent woman!

"I'm not in love ok, don't be gross Kenji!" she grumbled, glaring at him and the man just smirked, snorting through his nose as if he was saying something funny to himself in his head.

"Suit yourself, anyways, time to practice Nanako, and then I have a surprise for you," the man announced getting up, the annoying weird broom she was too accustomed to see in his fingers, but the word surprise was catching her attention in two different ways. Surprises weren't always exciting and nice when it came to Kenji. The whole performance tonight had started off as one of Kenji's 'surprises'.

"Wait and see, for now, practice!"


He had been hanging around the shrine all day, watching out for Namimori students who he considered owed the school money, and in his head, there were a lot of them. It was early hours really, and Hibari didn't see anyone yet worthy of smuggling their money, so instead he laid back, almost tempted to have an afternoon nap; he really did love those.

"Why don't you sit with me?" That voice was quiet and distant, but he knew it, seeing as it was one of the annoying trio that were basically the interesting baby's followers, the baseball one.

Sitting up a little, he looked for the location of the voice and wondered if the said baseball freak and whoever he was with had something he could deem 'collectable' for the school, in other words what he could steal. Only did he find his jaw slack a little when he saw the baseball boy had his hand on a certain wrist that belonged to possibly the only green haired person in Namimori.

What was she doing here? Then again, she did work here, but what was she doing with him?

Wait a second, why did he care? He didn't, duh. He was still watching though, his eyes in slits, but a smirk captured his face as the girl shook her hand from the other boy's grasp, however he wasn't pleased when she sat by him.

For some reason he found himself watching all the way through the pairs boring conversation, as if he was trying to make sure the boy didn't do anything inappropriate. Then again, he shook his head of these thoughts, and told himself once again he didn't actually care.

The boy opened a box, and before he could comprehend what was happening, the boy was pressing a piece of sushi to the girl's lips, and to his surprise –and annoyance- the girl's cheeks had notably started to glow, and instead of doing what most sane person would have done –this being in Hibari's books slapping the boy round the face- she literally ate from his hand.

He growled, feeling his fist tighten, and he almost felt the urge to go out there and grab the girl and take her home. However this urge was only because he thought her mother would probably think that what she was doing with a boy out in public was indecent, that was the only reason.

The girl actually looked like she was in bliss then, which was completely stupid and foolish…it was just food.

And before his eyes again, the same scene was happening and the girl was taking the food from his fingers as if it was natural, like some little dog.

God, he didn't want to watch this any longer, it was disgusting. Later, he would definitely rob—claim all his earnings for Namimori, oh and the girl would be punished, he would make sure of it.


Looking in the mirror was a girl with long dark chocolate hair. Her face covered in light make up, her eyes made to look bigger with mascara, her lips a pale pearly pink, not to mention her cheeks. She was dressed in a long white dress, and over the top, around her waist, was a long rouge skirt, it held in place with a ribbon of the same colour. Wrapped around her neck was a small thread-like ribbon, tied in a little bow.

However the image so perfect diminished in a matter of seconds as the shrine maiden in the mirror was scratching her head furiously thanks to the wig, and complaining that the make-up felt icky on her face.

"My face feels heavy, my body feels heavy, my head feels hot!" Nanako complained and whinged, the heat from the wig causing her head to itch like crazy.

"Nanako! Stop scratching now, you wouldn't have had to wear the wig if your hair wasn't flipping snot coloured!" Kenji barked and Nanako was quick to retort back,

"Emerald Green! Kenji, my hair is emerald green! Now let me take this thing off!" Trying to wretch the wig free from her head, her eyes were met dangerously close with the end of Kenji's broom.

"Move the wig, and I will never teach you how to fight," came the threat and Nanako hadn't really expected that. Instead she thought it would be more along the lines of 'move the wig and I'll poke your eye out'. Bringing her hands down reluctantly, she stared at herself again. This girl in the mirror was so alien, most definitely not her, she was almost tempted to take a picture just so she could compare it in future.

Her hands travelled down the fabric of the shrine maiden outfit that Kenji had given to her. Where did he get this from? Then again…was this…the kimono Yamamoto had bought? Was she supposed to be wearing this?

She had thought when Kenji said putting it on display that it would be hanging up for all to see not on a person, she had a feeling Yamamoto probably thought the same.

It really was beautiful though, the fabric was very soft…however, terribly heavy, and she really really wanted to slouch.

Her hands travelled back up and she cringed. Patting her chest, she grimaced noticing that this bit was rather too big on her; in fact Kenji had to pull it back as far as possible. For some reason having lack of boobs hadn't really bothered her till now.

Dropping her hands to her side, she turned and glanced over at the clock, 6:25…5 minutes. She bent over to pick the weird broom or maiden's pole up and headed for the door but not before she felt a tap to her shoulder.

"Remember, no slouching, be graceful, elegant, princess like," Kenji informed her and she just pulled a face, she was neither elegant or princess like, and all she wanted to do right now was slouch, "And stop pulling that face, you're supposed to be serene…one last thing."

The man rummaged his pockets and then pulled out something that was now clasped in his palm.

"What is it?" she asked, like always she was curious.

The man removed his fingers and sat in his palm was a hair clip with tassel type fabric that reminded her of the end of the shrine maiden pole.

"Keep still," the man uttered as he moved part of the fringe of the wig out of her face and clipped it, "And done, now people can see your face."

"I would rather them not see my face," she grumbled under her breath but this time the man didn't reprimand her, instead he smiled.

"You look fitting, very fitting, now, get out there."

If that was a compliment she would take it.


A/N: Urrrrrrrgh, no no no no no no no! Icky! Icky! Lack of plot moving on, it burns. Terrible grammar, wording, ew ew ew ew ewwwwwww! This chapter I tried to adapt the start of a new relationship from Nanako, however I haven't fully decided what type of relationship it will be, it could be a one-sided one on Nanako's behalf.

Oh and the shrine maiden role will probably be linked to Nanako from now on.

Sorry if this was poor, I'm just trying to get through the boring parts at the moment as quickly as possible to then throw the action at you.

Not only was this chapter long, but boring as hell. Off to down myself in a tank of acid.

Urgh, so negative…reviews would be nice, god I bitch and then I ask for reviews, I'm so silly. OH! And also thank you everyone who reviewed last chapter and faved and alerted, when I get an email about them it makes me go 8O YESSSS! *does over the top jump in the air*!