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Chapter Forty-Eight:
The road to success is always under construction – Anonymous
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23/12/18
When I woke up, Sakura was already dressed, showered and absolutely flawless. I grabbed her and Shikamaru's Christmas presents and gave them to them when we reached the train-station. They were both heading off to Shikamaru's parents place for Crissie.
"So you can open them on Xmas Day, and all that." I explained earnestly. They seemed semi surprised, I guess they'd thought I'd forget and have it for them afterwards. Haha, that's right. Sorano is one step ahead, as always.
"Is this a basket ball?" Shikamaru asked, frowning at his very circular package.
Okay, maybe not.
"Ummm, no. it's a … um, very round book." I told him in a very self-assured manner. "It makes the reading experience exciting."
"Does that mean I can open it no-,"
"No!" I say too quickly. "I mean, er, no. just don't."
"It's a basket ball, isn't it?"
"No, it's not."
"Sorano, it is. Stop lying."
"It's not."
"Look at it! If I gave this to you, what would you think?"
"Uhhh, a very round book. To make my reading experience exciting."
"Why the hell did you give me a basket ball?"
"Just get on the damned train, Shikamaru."
And so, with that lovely goodbye, Sasuke, Naruto and I (The elderly ones couldn't be bothered to come) waved goodbye to our fiendish friends. Sakura looking slightly green at the idea of meeting Shika's parents, intimately.
We walked back to the Kazekage's Offices alone. Well, alone as in without an entourage of body-guards. I kicked small rocks at Naruto, who would turn around, scowl at me, and then keep walking. I'd grin back widely and kick some more at him. Eventually he snapped, picked up several large rocks and lets just say if my body guards had of been there, he would have been arrested.
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Later.
"Sora, why did you give Shikamaru a basket ball?"
"I didn't."
"Yes, you did."
"I didn't!"
"I saw it, Sora! It was round."
"It. Was. Not. A. Basket. Ball."
"Okay, soccer?"
"No!"
"Badminton?"
"Yeah, it was badminton. Of course not! It wasn't a ball!"
"Gymnastics ball?"
"NO!"
"Was it one of those really, really large tennis balls you can get at novelty shops?"
I had a feeling I was going to kill Naruto very shortly.
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7:20
Naruto and I lay on the couch, staring at the ceiling.
"Sora, I'm so sorr-,"
"You apologize one more time and I'll never forgive you. Ever."
"Ohh… okay."
"Thank you," I paused and thought for a moment. "Hey, Naruto…," I began hesitantly.
"Yeah?"
"Have I changed?"
"What'd you mean?"
"Sakura said she didn't recognize me at the train station."
"Yeah, neither did I. Sasuke saw you first."
"Why didn't anybody recognize me?" I asked irritably.
"Sorano, have you really looked at yourself?"
"I do have a mirror in my bathroom, you know."
"No, I mean really had a good look. Here, come on." And we went and found the full-length mirror with the expensive carved- curly wooden frame in the hallway. We stood next to each other, and I frowned. A lot.
"Okay, so the one on the right…,"
"Is you."
"Yes…" I paused. "By the one on the right, is that your right, or my right?"
"Mine, and yours… we're standing next to each other."
"So… the one closest to the door is-,"
"That's me."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"And the one near the vase is me?"
"Yes."
"That vase? The purple one, that's-,"
"That's you, Sorano."
"Are you sure? I think you must be a little confu-,"
"Sorano! You're the one with goddamn breasts!"
"Ohh…," I paused, seeing no way out of that one, resigned. "I see."
Naruto sighed. "You see why we didn't recognize you?"
"A little bit, now I see me next to you… and all… I mean, I never really realized."
It wasn't just physical, the differences. They were everywhere. From the way I seemed to stand tall, even though I was a full head shorter then Naruto. The obvious was the fact I was now at lease five shades darker then him, despite my constant applying of sunscreen, my hair was now quite a few shades lighter too, from the sun exposure. So now I was a tanned, short little thing with highlights in her hair, freckles that had stood out quite prominently now blended more with the tanned skin. I had lost weight, too. Not in the lack of puppy-fat way, in the genuine weight-loss way. If it was from stress, or the fact I threw most of my food at Kankuro, I don't know. Also, it was impossible to miss. It practically changed my whole face. The ugly, vertical scar, dragging my eyebrow down at the end. I scowled at myself, and then took a double-take at the response from the mirror.
"Urgh…," I muttered. "I hate my scar."
"I think it adds character," Naruto tried desperately to find a positive.
I scowled at him. "Really? The way mould adds 'character' to cheese?"
"Well, people still eat it."
"Naruto, face it. Nobody really likes blue vein cheese."
"Plenty of people
do!" He said indignantly.
"Yeah? Like ninety year old
women."
"Well, you're liked by ninety year old women, aren't you?"
"Naruto! Comparing me to blue vein cheese is not helping!"
Naruto sighed. "Well, despite the occasional resemblance to a retarded seven-year-old, I still think you're the prettiest girl I know."
"Besides Sakura," I corrected.
He acknowledged this. "Okay, yeah, but Sakura is crazy and spends at least two hours in the bathroom. I've known you not to shower for three days, sometimes."
"Since when!?"
"Well, when we had our HSC finals, you didn't really shower that often-,"
"Okay! Okay, well, still. You were bound to get a really large scar eventually, I mean, it was inevitable."
I sighed. "I guess so. But why'd it have to bring my eyebrow into this?"
Naruto shrugged. "You need coffee, I guess this morning has been quite a shock."
"Well, I found somebody's given my highlights while I've been sleeping, compared to blue vein cheese and been told that I need to shower more," I scowled. "It hasn't really been great."
"So, coffee?"
"Coffee, yeah." I agreed, then scowled. Damnity damn damn. Go away Deidara!
We were sitting in Naruto's suit, eating biscuits and sighing occasionally. "Have I changed, Naruto?"
"I thought we just-,"
"No, I mean have I changed. Me. Inside-wise."
"I don't know. A little bit, I guess."
"Is it a good thing?"
Naruto considered this, "I don't know. I guess you're always changing. But then again, I guess I am too."
"Stop being like my Human-Mind Sensei."
Naruto laughed. "Okay, okay… umm, yeah. A little. But in a good, intelligent way."
"Wow, that's a surprise… but I guess it's a good one… er, I think."
"Okay… actually. Maybe not intelligent… experienced. That's better."
"Thanks, Naruto. Thanks a lot."
He obviously took this seriously, because he kind of puffed up a little and was all "No problem, I'm always here to help." I scowled at him, but he didn't notice.
And so the day passed, with Sasuke on the couch being slightly very generally moody, and me and Naruto chatting, me occasionally calling him a dickhead, him telling me I hadn't grown and that I should be sleeping more.
"I heard it's good for growing."
"Naruto, shut up."
"Serious! Scientifically proven!"
"Naruto, you are a lanky bastard, and nobody likes you."
"No need to be nasty-,"
And with that, I practically killed him single-handedly, with nothing but a pillow and an empty cup of tea.
"Sorano! Stop putting tealeaves in my-EWWWWWW! OH MY GOD THAT'S GROSS! IN MY EARS, WHY!? WHY SORANO!? Far-," and with that I shoved the pillow into his face again and ignored him.
"Shut up! God you guys are noisy." Muttered Sasuke grumpily. Secretly, I knew he was cheering me on.
"Sorry, Naruto, I'm to short to hear you, you're too far up for somebody with stubby legs like me to possibly hear," I say absent-mindedly, ignoring his cries for help. "Say hi to Mount Everest, while you're up there. In fact, Mars and Saturn are probably wondering where I've got too lately, too. Tell them I'm too short to visit anymore!" With this last bit I took the pillow off his face and he shot up like a bullet, gulping in air.
"Far out Sorano! You could murder somebody with that thing!"
"It's an empty teacup, Naruto."
"And the pillow!"
"Yes, if only, when Deidara and Sasori and It-it… it doesn't matter whoever else had come along, if only I'd've had an empty teacup and a pillow. Then I wouldn't have this ugly scar!"
That had been close. Very close. I'd come very, very close to saying Itachi then. Shit, I mean the Devil's name. Devil's name. Not the other word occasionally used. Anyway, it had been close, Sasuke lifted his eyes from his book momentarily, but didn't recognize any of the names, thank god, and kept reading. Naruto, of course, didn't really listen. I guess he can be forgiven, because he did have a pillow on his face and tealeaves in his ears.
The day passed uneventfully after that, I was very careful not to let anything slip. I stubbornly ignored the phasing between Sasuke's face and the Devil's.
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Hellohello helloooooooo Hellohello!
Hope you're all good? I'm not in a rush, for once! Ahhh, it's good to be wonderfully on time for everything. Except my Piano lesson, but I never really honestly plan to be on time for that. Plus my piano teacher is quite scary beyond nature's limits. I miss my old one, but she moved to Canada like a crazy person. If any of you Canadians out there see her around, tell her I said hi.
Canada isn't such a big place, is it? I'm sure finding her won't be too hard. She likes to compete in triathlons, er, start there. :P
Anyway, LOVE YOU.
Love, to-love.
P.s. Review! Pleeasssssssssssssssssse. Because love is in the air and Canada stole my piano teacher.
