A/N: I would like to thank everyone that added this story to their favourites and follows as well as everyone that reviewed the last chapter.
(Three weeks later)
"I believe that you are the team from Konoha who are here to see Jiraiya-sama."
Haku kept a smile on his face as his brown eyes took in the three shinobi in front of him. Two males and one female. Between the three of them, he presumed the leader was the female with the long blond-hair since she seemed to be standing right in front of the other two males. She is pretty but I can tell she is not going to get along with Naruto-sama. The thought made him grimace and he flickered his eyes to the other two males.
There was one male with a rotund build who had warm brown eyes. He won't cause problems for Naruto-sama. That much he could deduce from glancing at the male. His brown eyes flickered to the slim male standing beside them. Lazy and intelligent were the first thing that came to Haku's mind when he looked at him.
"Are you Jiraiya-sama's apprentice?" The slim male asked. Haku paused at the question and darted his eyes to the living room. I wish Naruto-sama did not decide to go to Tsuna-sama's house just because he is willing to pay her ¥25,000 to calm down Lambo-kun.He sighed and gestured for the three teens to come inside the apartment.
The only reason Naruto did not ask him to come was because there was no one for him to heal and also because she wanted someone else to greet the shinobi. He did not know why but Haku presumed that she knew them. The three teens did look like they were of the same age as his boss although his boss looked slightly younger than them.
"The honor of being Jiraiya-sama's apprentice goes to my boss," Haku finally answered as he gestured for them to take a seat on the couch. Their eyes widened at his words and he offered them a small smile. "I'm only the lucky subordinate who has been taken in by her."
If it was not for Naruto, he would probably be dead in the streets or begging for some food on the streets. It had been her kind nature that made her take in someone like him. Even if his boss claimed not to be kind, Haku knew his boss was very capable of being a kind person. His survival in this part of the world was because of her kindness.
He flickered his eyes to the pots of food that his boss had made for the team who would be temporary staying with them until Naruto could find another accommodation for them. I think Naruto-sama will suggest those three go to Middle School so they can understand how teenagers in this part of the world behave. He presumed that was what his boss would do when she caught sight of how young they were.
"I see that the three of you have met Haku," Jiraiya said. The three shinobi swirled their heads around and bowed when they saw the white-haired man coming out of the bathroom with a yellow towel on his head. The white-haired man raised a single eyebrow at him as if to ask where Naruto was and Haku offered a meek smile. "You will be interacting a lot with him and my cute, stubborn apprentice."
I have a feeling that Naruto-sama won't be happy if she knew how Jiraiya-sama described her. The thought made him frown and he stared at the three shinobi. They kept darting their eyes around as if they were trying to figure out where Naruto was or who she was. He doubt they would know until they meet with her since his boss did not like keeping actual photographs in display.
Most of the photos his boss had were on her phone. A better way for me to keep track and harder for me to destroy the evidence. That had been her explanation for why she chose to have him keep the evidence of her carrying Hibari in a phone and not have it printed out. He sighed at the memory. It was rather hard for him to believe that those two were not in a relationship.
"Where is your apprentice, Jiraiya-sama?" The girl demanded. Her light blue eyes flickered to the various books on display before landing on them. Jiraiya did not smile or laugh at the tone. He was calm and it reminded Haku again of the difference between mentor and apprentice. If Naruto was here, she would probably cut her for the disrespect directed at her.
Jiraiya frowned and glanced at him as if asking where was Naruto. Haku closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He had been with Naruto when she had been training Kyoko and Haru. For some strange reason Lambo had not been able to come to the forest for his training. Just when the training was over, Tsuna called and the moment Naruto asked for money…he knew what his fate was going to be.
He knew if he informed Jiraiya and Konoha shinobi that Naruto was at the Sawada household to do some work then Naruto would be furious with him.
"She will be either at her part-time job," Haku finally answered with a frown. He focused his attention to Jiraiya and the white-haired man looked back at him with tired eyes. "Or dealing with one of Reborn-san's shenanigans or patrolling the town."
The three shinobi looked befuddled while Jiraiya eyed him. The man knew as well as he did that all three were possibilities to where his boss would be at this time. There is always a chance she is with Hibari-san. There was a temptation for him to put it out there but unless he had proof of his boss' relationship with Hibari, he could not jump to conclusions.
His boss had been evading whether or not she entered a relationship with Hibari. She doesn't deny it nor does she accept it. It was something that confounded him. If the two of them were in a relationship, why not announce it? Haku always presumed Hibari would like to show his boss was with him. But there had been no clues.
Even when he witnessed the two of them in their patrols, Haku could not pick out a single change.
"So you don't know where she is?" The slim boy observed. His eyebrows were knitted together as his black eyes looked around the apartment. Haku noticed the boy had his eyes fixated on the various novels in the shelf. Those black eyes lingered the most on Naruto's favorite novel. He had never heard of it until he met Naruto.
Because she knows her fate, she has to be calculative when it comes to her behavior. That was what Naruto explained to him when he asked her why she liked reading that book so much. Haku believed differently. He thought his boss saw herself in that character. Of course if he would ever tell this to Naruto, she probably would deny it.
"She is a busy girl," Haku finally answered. He saw the irritation in the girl's eyes while both males glanced at each other, looking very weary at those words. I'm guessing she has no problems with showing her temper at them. The thought made him pause and he almost felt pity for not telling them where Naruto would be.
But if he told them then Naruto would be upset with him and cut his pay. He could handle a decrease in his salary but having the girl look at him with those icy cold eyes was the last thing he wanted. I can only wonder how Yamamoto-san handles it. He never knew what Yamamoto did to deserve it but it had to be a good reason.
His boss would never be even more cold for no reason.
"When can we meet her?" The girl demanded. Haku thinned his lips and looked to the clock. Knowing Naruto-sama, she might still be dealing with Tsuna-sama since she hasn't come back. He grimaced. It would be tempting for him to say at night but Haku knew from the look on Jiraiya's face, he was going to be having a few words with Naruto if she met the team at night.
He sighed. I will explain the whole thing to Naruto-sama, so she doesn't have a heart attack. Haku slid his hands into his pockets and locked eyes on the three teens. The boys seemed to be more focused on the fact that there was no telephone in the house. It seemed like even though it took them a few days to travel here from the cave in the forest, they were still suffering from a culture shock.
It was hard not to blame them.
"We will have dinner where she works," Haku finally answered. "And that is when you can meet her."
It would probably be enough time for Naruto to prepare herself.
"Mind explaining to me what you did to make Lambo cry for a whole two days?"
Naruto kept her tone cold and crisp as her eyes fixated on the sobbing toddler in the corner. It had been nice for her to have an excuse to miss greeting the team from Konoha, although dealing with a crying toddler was the last thing she wanted to do. She sighed and observed the sobbing toddler with a frown playing on her lips.
Everything about Lambo looked different from the toddler that she had come to train. His hair was more contained, not looking at all like the afro that she was so used to seeing him. His clothes were different too. He was not wearing a cow onesie. Instead the toddler wore a black jacket with a cowhide pattern collar.
She knelt down and inspected the wailing toddler. Even though he looks different, he looks like Lambo. Her blue eyes darted to Tsuna and the boy looked almost nervous as if he was uncertain about whether to explain it to her or not. He should explain it to her because she had a limited amount of time before she had to go to work.
"Kurokawa-san wanted to meet the future version of Lambo," Tsuna answered. Naruto swirled her head at the older boy and raised a single eyebrow at him. Was he really not going to explain what did that have to do with what happened? She grimaced. "Well she had a crush on him and she threatened to tell Kyoko-chan that Haru and me are dating…when we are not dating."
I can understand where he is going with this, but how did this happen? She thinned her lips and took a deep breath. No. She needed to think logically of what could happen. Sawada was a coward and as Kurokawa realized easily manipulated. The fact he had no guts to explain whatever his relationship with Haru meant he agreed so easily to her request.
But there was another thing she had to wonder when it came to Tsuna. What did he mean by a future version of Lambo? The toddler looked the same except for some changes in his hair and clothes. She rubbed the sides of her head. If what he claimed was true then the boy should look older. He should act older too.
Her brain could not connect the dots so she should just ask him.
"What do you mean by the future version of Lambo?" Naruto asked. She folded her arms against her chest and looked to her brown-haired classmate, waiting for him to explain. He only knitted his eyebrows at her and the blonde could feel her irritation growing at the lack of answer. She took in another deep breath. "You claim that she wanted to see the future version of Lambo but I only see a sobbing boy."
Tsuna frowned and flickered his eyes to the wailing toddler. Guilt shone through his eyes, earning a frown from the blonde. What was he not telling her? She could figure out that he tried to use the toddler for his own benefit. He claims he can't be apart of the Mafia but he does something like this. Another sigh escaped from her lips as the toddler continued to sob.
She should hug the toddler but it would be uncomfortable for her to show affection in front of Tsuna. It would ruin the image she made for herself and it was not worth it. She rubbed the sides of her head as Lambo's wails scraped against her ears. This was almost as bad as the sound of fingernails against the chalkboard. It was a good thing she liked kids or else she would whack him for the sobbing.
"Do you remember when a huge bazooka was sent flying towards you, two months ago?" Tsuna asked quietly. His tone was filled with nerves and the blonde paused. Huge bazooka? She knitted her eyebrows together and a memory flashed in her mind again. Wait…was he talking about the time when she was in that nice illusion.
She kept her expression completely blank as the memory of an older version of Hibari flashed through her mind. You were being a greedylittle fox again and decided to try and test my limit since our cub isn't here. Those words echoed in her head as molten grey eyes flashed before her eyes. Right. That was definitely hard for her to forget.
"What does that have to do with Lambo? He still looks five," Naruto pointed out. Her hand wandered to her neck and the blonde rubbed the back of her neck. Tsuna darted his eyes to the sobbing toddler, closing his eyes as the toddler continued to sob. I can only imagine how long he had been dealing with this crying. It was a pure miracle the boy had patience with this sobbing.
She would have left the house the moment Lambo exceeded two hours of crying. It was fine for a baby. A three-year-old would be acceptable but a five-year-old crying for this long was unacceptable in her eyes. She straightened her shoulders and kept her expression as cold as an ice sculpture before looking at Tsuna.
"The bazooka malfunctioned and now Future Lambo is in the body of his 5-year-old self," Tsuna explained. Naruto nodded and the boy straightened his back. "His mind is still of a 15-year-old and we don't know how long he would be like this."
If his mind is that of a 15-year-old then I'm disappointed with him and my future self. She pinched her nose and fixated her eyes on the sobbing toddler. At the age of 15, he should be too old to cry in public and even too old to cry for this long. Did her future self got a little bit more gentle because she had a kid? No way. She refused to believe she allowed herself to coddle him too much.
She never accepted the young Lambo crying so much and an older Lambo crying was definitely not acceptable. She took a deep breath and exhaled before looking at the teen beside her. "Why is he crying so much?"
"Kurokawa doesn't like kids and she told him to shoo," Tsuna explained. Naruto poked her tongue against her cheeks and felt her eyebrows twitched at those words. Was he serious? Lambo was crying like a baby because the girl said something like this to him. I am going to toughen him up. She grinded her teeth together and focused on the boy.
As soon as I can get the Konoha team an apartment, I'm taking Lambo away from Sawada. She took in a deep breath and focused her eyes on the sobbing kid. If this was what could reduce the 15-year-old to cry then either she was doing a terrible job training him or Sawada and his mother were not doing a good job with him.
Shaking her head, Naruto placed her hand on top of the boy's head and a single green eye locked onto her. His eye widened slightly and it flickered to her stomach before looking back at her. Why the hell is he interested in my stomach? She raised a single eyebrow and the toddler wiped his eyes but did not try to sob.
"Young Naruto-neechan?" Future Lambo asked hopefully. She nodded and the toddler wiped his eyes again, almost as if he was trying to stop himself from crying again. Maybe she only had to be there and the Future Lambo would stop crying…or maybe not. Her eyebrows twitched when the toddler returned to sobbing again.
It was more muffled but her ears could still hear his crying. The blonde pinched her nose. Should she be happy that he was being less loud in his cries? It was still grating her ears. A 15-year-old should never cry this much if you asked her. She inhaled and exhaled, trying to control her temper before flickering her eyes to Tsuna.
"You will pay me a ¥100,000 if I can calm him down right?" Naruto asked Tsuna. Brown eyes widened and the blonde raised a single eyebrow, daring him to argue against her wishes. She might have increased the price by four times amount but it was the boy's fault. If it was not for the fact he tried to use the toddler for his own gain, this would have never happened.
Tsuna frowned. "But that is four times the—"
"—You did not tell me the whole story of what happened," she answered dryly. Tsuna grimaced and the blonde pulled out her phone as it rang. Naruto-sama, the team from Konoha will come to your workplace to have dinner! Jiraiya-sama will be furious if you avoid them. The blonde pinched her nose and she could practically see the apologetic look on Haku's face when he sent her the message.
He brought her time to handle her emotions and for that she would have to be grateful for the fact that he bought her time. Taking a deep breath, the blonde looked down at the sobbing boy. She should get the job done before getting to work. I am a strong girl that can handle anything. She would not allow them to affect her.
"Future Lambo, how old are you?" Naruto asked quietly. The boy blinked and stopped crying the moment she asked this question. His green eye focused on her, telling her that the blonde he knew what was going to happen. A quick glance to her classmate, who kept blinking at the fact that the future Lambo had stopped crying or maybe at the fact her tone was cold.
She guessed it could be both, since future Lambo had been crying non-stop until she asked the teen about his age and the fact that she was not talking in a gentle tone to Lambo. For a five-year-old, I will be able to talk in a gentle tone. She sighed. The blonde tucked a strand of her blond hair against her ear.
"I'm 15," Lambo muttered. His green eyes were still teary but the blonde could see that the boy was trying to control his emotions. It would have been good for a five-year-old but Naruto could not accept this for a 15-year-old. She exhaled and looked up at the ceiling before darting her eyes back at the teenager in the toddler body.
"Do you think you are acting like a 15-year-old or are you acting like a baby?" Naruto asked, keeping her tone curt as her blue eyes focused on the boy. She could practically hear the squeak coming out from Tsuna's voice and the blonde felt her eyebrows twitched. Was he really surprise that she would act like this? It was not like she was a kind person.
Kindness would never toughen up a person but being blunt would toughen up this person.
"She shooed me, Naruto-neechan! I didn't do anything wrong!" Future Lambo grumbled, wiping his eyes. The blonde took in a deep breath and held in her temper. Do you believe that will move me? She grinded her teeth together and took a deep breath before looking up at the ceiling. She needed to control herself.
"Life isn't fair but crying in public like this isn't doing you any favor," Naruto declared as her eyes focused on him. She kept her hands to the side while Tsuna focused his eyes on her. She kept her tone cold and impersonal as green eye focused on her. His green eye shut, telling her that the boy either understood what she was getting at or he was hurt by her words.
She did not care but the boy needed to understand.
"But didn't you ever cry? You told me you used to cry a lot," Lambo muttered. Naruto froze at the comment. I guess we are very close in the future. She should deny it but it was hard for her to lie when her future-self admitted this to him. She darted her eyes at Tsuna and the brown-haired boy blinked before running out of the door.
She stood up and walked over to Tsuna's table. Pulling out a piece of paper, the blonde began to sketch the silent seals and channeled her chakra onto the seal before plastering it on the door. Was she being paranoid for putting these seals? Nope. Tsuna and Reborn had both proven to her that they did have a habit of listening in on her conversation.
"Yes, I used to cry a lot but I never did it in front of anyone," Naruto admitted. She looked down at the 15-year-old stuck in the body of a five-year-old and flicked his forehead. "Crying never helped anyone and you are giving a bad image to everyone if you cry in front of people. You can do it in private where no one will judge you. People will use your tears against you so suck it up and when you are alone, cry your heart out."
Because crying in front of people will never help you in the long run.
She would know after all.
"N-Naruto, what are you doing here!"
Naruto tore her eyes away from the dirty table and kept her eyes completely blank at the sight of a gawking Ino, a wide-eyed Shikamaru and Choji. She had known there was a team coming from Konoha but she did not expect this. I think I remember Shikamaru complaining that he was definitely going to be on a team with Ino because of their clan. She thought he had been joking but it seemed like he was being truthful.
It must have been pure headache for him and Naruto put down the plates of dirty plates. She flickered her eyes to Haku and the boy had a smile on his face. It was rather hard for her to dissect what was going through his head at the moment. There were times when Naruto believed she had him figured out but there were times when he showed another side.
It did not matter right now.
"So you are the team that I will be teaching how to blend in The Outside?" Naruto asked. ¥7,000,000 is not worth dealing with Ino, if I had known that she was coming then I would increase the price even more. She took a deep breath as her head throbbed. She should have asked Jiraiya about the team but she had been too pissed off that he would think she would do this because he was her mentor.
She kept her expression blank as Ino gawked at her words. Shikamaru blinked but did not groan at the knowledge that she would be in charge of their training. It will be too troublesome in his eyes. A sigh escaped her lips and her blue eyes darted to Choji. The boy only blinked, looking completely confused by her behavior.
It had been nearly three years and people could change a lot in three years.
"Wait a second…Naruto is the one teaching us!" Ino screeched. Her light blue eyes looked absolutely horrified as she swirled her head at the other members of her team. Naruto felt her eyebrows twitched. Was the girl really going to make a commotion at her work place? If anyone should be complaining then it should be her. "You work for Naruto! The Dead Last!"
Naruto knew from the way Haku stilted his eyes that the boy was not pleased by her words. She thinned her lips when the boy flickered his eyes at her. Do not cause a commotion here. She hoped the boy understood her message. As much as she wanted to see Haku to throttle the girl, she would rather not have to explain to her boss what happened.
Honestly I expected this to happen but if I keep my emotions in check then everything will be fine. She exhaled and picked up the dirty plates as Ino continued to gawk at her. If she hurled a fist against the girl then Naruto knew it would send the message she had not changed. There was also a chance Jiraiya would take away her money if she ruined Ino's face.
If only she could do Hibari's version of biting people to death.
"If you are here to state the obvious then return back to my apartment and do it there," Naruto said. Their eyes widened as if they just realized the apartment that they were currently staying in was her apartment and not Jiraiya. She inspected her fingers and darted her eyes to the two boys. Choji eyed the sushi on display, looking at it with desire and the blonde sighed. "Otherwise just take a seat and I will get Yamamoto to take your order."
"Yamamoto-san is working today?" Haku asked. Naruto nodded and darted her eyes to the curtains, where she could see brown eyes peeking in on them. Those brown eyes sharpened, telling the blonde that the boy was listening in on their conversation. She should stop the conversation but unfortunately it was Ino.
The same Ino who had the habit of being bossy and taking control over everything. I don't understand how she was one of the most popular girls in the Academy. She pinched her nose and Yamamoto looked away from the curtain. If he wanted for them to talk about this then she was never going to talk about this to him.
"What the hell did you do to convince the Toad Sannin to take you in as an apprentice? Does he know that you failed three times?" Ino demanded, slamming both of her hands against the table. Naruto thinned her lips and kept her expression blank as she put the dirty plates on the table. Was she really going to cause a scene in front of people? How the hell was she a shinobi? A shinobi should keep quiet.
A shinobi should also know the appropriate time to discuss things. I'm going to need a good spar with Hibari later. She took a seat on the table across Ino and clasped her hands together. Her blue eyes focused on the furious eyes of her former classmate. Ino looked so irritated and Naruto imagined that it was the idea of learning things from the Dead Last.
Shikamaru pinched his nose and looked at Ino. Naruto knew from the reluctance in his movement that he was not in the mood to try and calm down his teammate, but he also looked almost concern of what she might do. The blonde eyed the older boy and Shikamaru thinned his lips as if he understood what she was trying to say.
Then again the boy was analytical when he wanted to be.
"I did nothing to convince him but if you want to know then ask Ero-Sennin," Naruto answered with a crisp tone. She longed to yell at the girl for her rude behavior but acting as cold as ice would make her seem mature. She took in a deep breath. "And instead of focusing on why Jiraiya chose to train me, focus on how to blend in."
Shikamaru and Choji exchanged glances while Haku raised a single eyebrow at her. Ino bristled, looking offended by her words, and the blonde looked to the various empty tables. I'm going to lose a lot of money when Choji eats. She thinned her lips. Maybe she should ask for a discount from Tsuyoshi-san when her rounded classmate ordered food.
I think he might even be willing when he sees how much Choji can eat. She knew from her experience that her boss enjoyed the customers who ordered a lot. In this sense, Choji was the perfect customer for her boss. Her blue eyes darted to the various sushi on display and then flickered back to the team in front of her.
"You are in no way capable of teaching us!" Ino declared, folding her arms against her chest. "You can't even do a Bunshin Jutsu properly."
But I can do the Kage Bunshin without any problem and I'm great in stealth. The words were on the tip of her tongue and Naruto took in a deep breath to control her raging temper. She was calm. She could control her temper. Those labels did not matter to her anymore. Herbivores are stupid. Those words from Hibari echoed in her ears and her hands uncurled from a fist.
So what if she failed to do Bunshin Jutsu? She could do the rasengan. She was learning fuinjutsu and that was more useful than any Academy level Bunshin Jutsu. She might be terrible when it came to resisting genjutsu but Naruto knew there were very little people who could punch as hard as her. Ino's words did not matter to her.
She was Uzumaki Naruto and she was more than just the Dead Last from the Academy.
"Ero-Sennin has only been here for seven months and he still struggles when it comes to blending in with The Outside," Naruto informed them. Her blue eyes darted to Haku and the boy grimaced. She wondered if he recalled the same incident where people kept saying that her Godfather was a cosplayer or if he was recalling another incident. "I have been here for nearly three years and I know more about The Outside."
She kept her tone even as her eyes focused on the three of them. Naruto waited for them to argue with her. No, she did not wait for them to argue with her. She waited for Ino to make a scene. It had been nearly three years since they last saw each other and the girl was showing her that she had not changed at all.
"You can't be better than a Sannin," Ino declared.
"Did I ever claim I was better than my mentor? I claim I knew how to blend in since I have been here for nearly three years and that makes it logical for anyone to presume I can teach you how to blend in" Naruto said dryly as she stood up from her seat. She focused her eyes on Ino and allowed a thin smile to grace her lips.
Ino blinked while Shikamaru and Choji glanced at each other. Haku covered his mouth, trying his hardest to muffle his chuckles but the blonde could hear it very clearly. He knew what a thin smile meant. He has seen me direct it to Sawada when he pisses me off. She allowed her thin smile to widened as her eyes locked on the team before her.
"Now I should inform you this but Jiraiya is paying me to train you," Naruto chirped and her eyes glinted with cruelty. "So one word from me and Jiraiya will send your ass back home if he knows that I increased the price because of you."
She was not going to be playing games with them.
The Little Fox is very irritated.
Hibari kept his eyes fixated on his little prey as she stood in front of his living room. He knew she was irritated from the tightness of her jaws alongside the way her steps had been more forced. The fact she showed this much of her irritation told him volumes of her current state of mind. It told him that she wanted to fight.
Putting down the file, he picked up his tonfa and dashed straight at the little fox. Blue eyes sharpened but Hibari could see from the way her shoulders relaxed that the little fox was relieved by his behavior. He jumped up, only for his little fox to grab his tonfa and swinging him straight to his couch.
He felt his lips when his little fox settled on his crotch. He almost smirked but the thought of smirking at the girl faded when Little Fox rested her head against his neck. It was the first time Little Fox did this. She always made a point not to do this if they were not kissing and it was something that he respected from her.
"Hibari, I know you don't do emotions," The Little Fox muttered. Her voice sounded so tired and Hibari could only feel his lips tugging into a frown. It was not like his Little Fox to vocalize something that obvious and it was not like her to show her exhaustion. "But just hug me."
Hibari blinked at the order and looked down at his Little Fox. Blue eyes shone with frustration and tiredness as if pleading him to just give her some comfort. If it had been anyone else, he would whack them. But the Little Fox rarely gave orders to him. She rarely demanded for things like this and he knew that something must have happened.
He wrapped his arms around her and stiffened at the feel of small hands wrapping themselves around him. It was not often for her to do this. She respected his space but Hibari found he did not mind doing this with her. Maybe not often but if she wanted some form of comfort like this when she was frustrated…then he could compromise.
"Little Fox?" What happened? He felt no need to air the words as Little Fox looked up at him. Her blue eyes showed no tears, not like he expected his little prey to show them. She was not like other females. His prey was too strong and stubborn to show tears. The day she showed her tears, he knew it was when she could not control her emotions.
His little prey sighed and burrowed her head against his chest. He could smell the citrus scent on her hair, the scent that almost always lured him to sleep. He liked her scent. Her scent was probably one of the things he was attracted alongside her voice. His eyes flickered down to her ample chest that rubbed against his own.
He closed his eyes and felt all the blood being directed downwards.
"I feel so irritated," she admitted quietly. Hibari nodded. He knew she was irritated from the moment she entered his living room but for her to say it out loud told him that she was very irritated. Her shoulders trembled and he only hugged her tighter. Hugging was strange. It was not something he did…he could barely remember the last time someone even hugged him.
His family had never been known for being affectionate.
Hibari tilted Naruto's head and stared at those tired eyes. Blue eyes shone with exhaustion and he knew his little fox was not only irritated. There were other emotions that she was keeping to herself. If he was perhaps like those herbivores, he would push her to talk about her feelings. But he would not force her to talk about emotions that she was not ready to confront.
His Little Fox was strong and whatever problems she had…he knew she was able to overcome it.
"Why?" He finally asked. His little fox did not blink at his question, only allowing her pink tongue to peek through her lips. A sign she was debating about whether or not to explain the reason for her frustration. Hibari kept his eyes fixated on her, not allowing his eyes to go to her lips. Not the time for him to get distracted by her.
Little Fox wanted him to listen and he knew she wanted to vent.
"I met my childhood classmates," she admitted. A growl escaped her lips and Hibari felt his lips twitched. It was a cute sound to hear from his little fox but he also knew the growl meant those childhood classmates of hers did not bring any good memories for her. "Two of them were fine and they are my childhood friends but Ino is a different story. She always got on my nerve."
The black-haired teen bobbed his head. He could figure that out from her growl but he doubt Little Fox wanted him to say anything. Not like he wanted to talk. Talking had never been his thing and listening was only slightly above. But his little fox knew this. She knew he would never talk and if she wanted him to listen then he could do this for her.
Beside, he enjoyed listening to his little fox talk. Sometimes when he woke up from his nap, he would just close his eyes and listened to her as she talked. He also closed his eyes and allowed his little fox to think he was not awake while she inspected him. Hibari shook his head and raised his eyebrow at her.
Why did she get on your nerve? He knew from the widening of her blue eyes that his Little Fox understood what the raised eyebrow meant.
"She was always so obsessed with boys and dieting," his little fox admitted. She laid her head against her chest and sighed. He could tell his little fox was calming down with the way her shoulders stopped trembling. Another sigh escaped her lips. "And she always jumped to conclusions whenever I challenged her crush to a fight."
Hibari nodded and tilted his little fox's head. Blue eyes glowed with annoyance and his lips almost twitched when he saw how his Little Fox puffed her cheeks. It was an adorable look. His Little Fox raised a single eyebrow as if asking him if he found it funny. He shook his head and pointed to her cheeks.
She blinked and shook her head at him.
"While you can laugh at my cheeks, I'm going to continue ranting," Little Fox grumbled. He knew she was not really angry because her lips were twitching into a smile. She looked up at him. "You know she thought I challenged her crush because I had a crush, not because he was the best fighter in our class."
She sounds ridiculous…and a headache. He snorted and looked down at his Little Fox. The blonde looked amused as if she knew exactly what went through his mind. Judging from the twinkle in her eyes, Hibari knew the girl found amusement over his annoyance at what her classmate concluded. If the girl thought like this then he would have fondness for everyone he battled.
Pineapple Head was proof that was not the case.
"Y'know if it was not for the fact Jiraiya is going to pay me ¥7,000,000…I would have definitely hit her," his little fox admitted. The herbivore should be glad that the Little Fox wanted to keep her money. The thought made his lips twitched as his prey looked up at him. Her shoulders trembled and he wondered what was going through her head to make her furious.
His grey eyes widened slightly when the girl grabbed his hand and placed it underneath her shirt. It might be only her back but the Little Fox had never really done this. He always had to be a little bit cunning. Since she tells me that I can't touch her breasts, I go to her back. The girl never complained but this was the first time she did this.
"Little Fox?"
"I liked the massage from last time," she admitted. Her blue eyes focused on him and he could see her eyes pleading for him to do as she pleaded. He felt his lips twitched as his hand felt the smoothness of her back. He rubbed circles around her back, pushing deeply into any knots that he could feel on the girl. "I-I don't think I can go back home without losing my temper."
He could hear her voice hitching when he dug deeply on the knot on her lower back. She arched like an archer bow and grabbed his shoulder, letting out a quiet whimper. His lips curled into a smirk. Blue eyes looked at him and flickered to his lips before looking back at him. She gulped and looked away. He did not stop, pressing all the knots that he could feel. Her salty scent kissed his ears and her whimpers spoke volumes of her stress.
"Little Fox," he muttered. There were so many knots in her back, probably more than he believed and it made him pause. Hibari knew that even if he massaged her back that she would be stressed again if he only massaged. He knew he was no master masseur and if he wanted the Little Fox to keep her emotion in check.
Blue eyes looked up at him and he could see that the Little Fox understood what he was trying to tell her. A massage was not going to help you calm down. Her eyes darted to his lips and she nodded. He removed his hands from her lower back as his little fox pressed her lips against his own lips.
All of her frustration was poured into that kiss. She kissed him again and again like she wanted to destroy him and the thought made him bring her up. His chest tightened and he felt himself bringing the girl closer against him. He could feel the anger coming out of her as she repeated pressed her smooth lips against him. He could feel her frustration as her hands slid over his back. Not anger towards him but to whatever that female did to his little fox.
He felt his control slipping the more and more his Little Fox kissed him. He could feel his hands wandering up but Hibari stopped himself. As tempting as it was for him to cup her breast, this was not the right time. He groaned and kissed her even more urgently, bringing her closer to him and caressed her neck before moving back down to her back. No marks decorated her back, making her skin feel more like silk.
If they had more time, he probably would mark her neck.
"Does the Little Fox feel better now?" He muttered to her as Little Fox pressed her lips against his neck. He tried to keep his breathing steady even when he felt her hot breath ghosting his neck. Blue eyes looked at him before pressing another kiss on his jawline. A little smile played on her lips but he could see her eyes darting to his chest.
She relaxed against him.
"I think you effectively distracted me and helped me calm down, Skylark."
He only smirked at her answer.
A/N: Well Team 10 is here and Naruto is already feeling stressed out with them. Now here is another set of questions:
Question 1: What do you think of Haku's perspective?
Question 2: What do you think is going through Shikamaru and Choji's mind while they watched the exchange between Ino and Naruto?
Question 3: Did any of you expected for Naruto to react like this to Ino?
Please review and tell me your thoughts.