Sorry that there has'nt been a new chapter up in quite some time guys! :(
Ive just recently finished my exams and such so I should be back for good now and there should'nt be any big gaps between uploads,back to the regular rutine now! :D
There should also be another chapter up later today to kinda make up for everything. And now, as always I do not own any one or thing from the Naruto universe, just my OC's and the idea for this fanfic.
Thank you for having patience and ENJOY! :)
Chapter 11 - How things change, Yet stay the same
An awkward silence filled the air as Sasuke inwardly panicked. He froze for a few moments before looking over to Naruto who was already looking back at him. Sasuke widened his eyes as if to say "what the hell do I say" and Naruto shrugged his shoulders in response.
A small series of chuckles drifted from the back of the car as Mafuyu leaned forward in his seat once more to address the dark haired teen who looked like he was about to faint...
"It's okay I won't kill you or anything...though one of the perks of being in the army is that people generally don't mess with you, but I digress, murdering someone is not on my list of things to do today..."
He spoke with a hint of humour as he leaned on the back of Sasuke's car seat. The teenager had still not spoken yet, unsure of exactly what to say.
Still sensing the uneasiness of the dark haired teen, Mafuyu put a hand on his shoulder gain his full attention. Sasuke turned his head to the side and glanced at his friends older brother, feeling somewhat more comfortable with the situation now that death threats had been taken off the table.
"...You would be right in saying that I have an interest in her..."
Sasuke spoke carefully as he broke eye contact with Mafuyu and looked down at his hands as they were rested on his knees, suddenly realising his tense demeanour.
Elsewhere, Himiko and Jiriya had finished their meal. Jiriya had ordered an extra cup of coffee now that he was done so he could take a few moments to let his food go down.
Himiko saw the opportunity to present the card and chocolates now that there was a momentary silence.
Reaching into her bag on the floor she addressed him casually.
"...Now because Naruto couldn't be here he wanted to make sure that I gave you these on his behalf."
Jiriya looked over to her as she gained his attention. He furrowed his brow slightly as he inwardly questioned what was going on.
She set the box of chocolates on the table and pushed them towards him. He returned a grateful smile and he picked the box up and briefly read the label. Himiko couldn't help but grin from ear as he set the chocolates back down on the table, eyes beginning to water slightly. He suddenly got up from his seat and embraced the teen in a bear hug.
"Oh Himiko, this has been such a great day. I know Naruto couldn't be here but I'm glad to have you both."
He took a step back to wipe a tear from his eye, laughing at his sudden emotional outburst. Himiko laughed along as they sat back down in their seats.
"Well it's the least we could do. You've done so much for us, we figured that we owed you at least one day pampering."
Himiko smiled thoughtfully as she mused, her thoughts wondering to Naruto once again.
I wonder how things are going with Naruto, he hasn't texted me yet to say he's back at the house...
After a few minutes of silence Jiriya inwardly collected himself and finished off his coffee. Himiko then paid the bill and they ventured outside once more to decide where they were headed next.
"Why don't we go to that book store you're always talking about? It'll be my treat."
Himiko suggested, remembering that Jiriya had went on for weeks about a new book store opening
The two stood outside the restaurant, sun beating down on them as they decided we're they would head next.
"Oh you treat me too much Miss Himiko, but I'm afraid I can't resist"
Jiriya chuckled joyfully as he held his hand up in defeat.
"There have been a few books that I've been waiting to get my hands on I must admit."
"Well then, it's a plan!"
Himiko enthused as they headed in the direction of the bookstore a few streets down from the restaurant.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere was still somewhat tense between Sasuke and Mafuyu. The teen had still not started driving yet, too preoccupied with the conversation at hand.
The white haired man sat back in his seat after a few moments of silence, speaking up as he did so.
"I see..."
The two teens looked at each other in a state of blind confusion. Sasuke in particular was
"Wait, that's it?"
The blonde questioned out loud, seeing as Sasuke couldn't muster up the courage.
"Yes?"
Mafuyu answered questionably, matching the confusion on the teen's faces.
"...Are we staying here at the airport? I thought we had somewhere to be..."
He spoke up once more after a momentary silence, humour coating his words.
"Your right, let's get going."
Sasuke started up the car once more and quickly exited the parking lot of the airport.
After a long and awkward journey the three ended up back at Jiriya's bungalow.
As they closed in there was no way to tell that a birthday party was merely an hour away from being held. Himiko and Naruto were careful in how they decorated so that there were no obvious signs from the outside of the house.
As Sasuke pulled into the driveway, he stopped to look over at Naruto.
"Do you need me for anything else?"
"Well, you're welcome to come to the party if you want. It would be a great opportunity to-"
"Okay okay I'll come, but later on...I have to go do some errands for Itachi first."
He cut the blonde off mid sentence, already knowing what he was going to say as he wore a smug grin across his face.
Realising that the pair had slightly overstayed their welcome, Naruto and Mafuyu got out of the car. Naruto however, made sure to take his time so as to not drop the cake and ruin all their plans so he stepped out of the car carefully, cake in both hands and made his way towards the front door of the house.
Sasuke spent no time in pulling out of the driveway and giving a quick wave to his blonde haired friend before speeding down the road in the opposite direction. All the while Mafuyu stood at the bottom of the garden, staring in the direction that Sasuke had just escaped from.
He took a moment to chuckle and shake his head, disbelief washing over him.
"Why does Himiko always go for the weird ones...?"
"You haven't seen the half of it yet. Trust me when I say it gets crazier than that..."
Naruto called over between chuckles, forgetting himself as he was lost in the conversation. A few moments passed before he remembered he was still standing at the door with the cake, not to mention that the sun was beating down on them.
Starting to panic, Naruto tried to balance the cake on one arm so he could grab his keys out of his pocket.
"You just gonna stand there Mafuyu, were on a tight schedule here?!"
The blonde screamed out, as he frantically looked for his keys. Mafuyu jumped as he forgot just how loud the teen could be.
Taking the cake out of his hands, Mafuyu stood at the door as Naruto thoroughly checked all of his pockets.
"Oh man, I can't lose my keys now!"
"Clam down and look again okay."
The white haired man spoke in a relaxed tone that only seemed to make him more nervous. After searching once more a sigh of relief escaped the teen when he found them in the back pocket of his jeans.
"See I told you didn't I?"
After half an hour of setting up some extra decorations and phoning the odd person to let them know the cost is clear, the party was all set up and people started to arrive.
The house, and more so the living room, was soon bustling with people excited to see how Jiriya would react to the surprise. Amongst the people were some of Jiriya's old friends such as Tsunade and Orochimaru, who would raise their eyebrows in disbelief every time they met eyes with the teen, entirely unsure of how he managed to keep the whole thing together.
"He must have had help from...Oh what was her name? Himiko I think it was...Yes, she's a smart girl."
Orochimaru whispered to Tsunade, eyes following the teen as he disappeared into the crowd.
"I'd say so... I just can't believe you don't remember your own students' names."
Tsunade whispered in reply, voice increasingly harsh as she continued to speak.
In the kitchen Naruto had finally found Mafuyu again seeing as he disappeared as soon as everyone started to arrive. He found the white haired man leaned against the kitchen table, eyes focused on the large clock that hung on the wall.
"So when is he supposed to be here?..."
He spoke quietly, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Himiko just texted me to say that they're on their way...they should be about 10 minutes at most."
Naruto spoke thoughtfully as even without looking at him, he could sense the sombreness that radiated from the soldier that was stood before him.
"I'll admit, I didn't expect to find you here. I thought you had disappeared or something."
He tried to make a joke to lighten the mood, but alas, Mafuyu had barely even relaxed from his ridged stature.
"...I'm not too good with crowds these days. The army teaches you to keep your distance from them...It sounds silly I know but it's a way to protect yourself."
A few moments of silence passed between the two, a sober atmosphere filled the air. Naruto quietly thought to himself as he tried to move the conversation on.
I never thought that being in the army had affected him this much. I can tell it has taken a toll on him physically, but I've never seen him like this. At first I couldn't see any difference in him...but damn, the army must really be tough...
The teen took another few moments to shake off this heavy thoughts before addressing Mafuyu once more.
"You should probably go somewhere out of sight until the coast is clear...How about her room?"
"Yea... That's a good idea."
He spoke distantly as he turned his gaze away from the clock and over to the blonde teen.
"Okay it's just down the hall, the door opposite the living room."
Naruto watched as the white haired man exited the room, a sense of solemnity shadowing him like some sort of ghost.
Thing should really get moving again in the next chapter, I just thought that It was important to give a bit of background to Mafuyu and hopefully put a bit of humour in there for the meantime. .
The next chapter should hopefully be up today, but If not then it will be 100% up by tomorrow!
Thank you for reading I hope you enjoyed! :) x