Please read! ! ! This idea is not mine, it's based on the comic《好想做女侠》by 吞吞pluton. It's a story I really loved for a long time but it was discontinued sadly, that's why I wrote this :-DD I changed a lot of the original plot to fit the characters and story but the beginning parts are mostly the same.
"Waah…"
"Miss?"
"Waahh… hic"
"Miss! What's wrong?" a worried maid asked for the second time. The young lady she served had been acting very strange these past few days.
Tenten stared into the mirror with tearful eyes and a deep pout, still not being able to come to terms with what she saw.
The reflection staring back at her blinked a pair of perfect lashes, revealing large almond shaped eyes.
Her dark brown hair fell in healthy waves down her back. The front locks were held up in loose twists on either side of her head. It was an elegant hairstyle, decorated with floral pins of blue and green, matching the luxurious silk skirt and robe she had on. She was beautiful. The only problem was...
This is actually not my real body.
No, the high class and graceful young lady she saw in the mirror was not actually her.
Tenten tried hard to pull herself together, noticing the maid behind her become increasingly worried, but unmistakable sadness remained etched on her face.
Crying, showing weakness- she hated these things in herself above all. However this situation was far too bizarre to not shed at least a few tears.
After all, waking up in the body of a stranger is certainly not normal.
Tenten's previous body was a disciple of the Maito clan (though it was only three people). The clan was made up of fellow student Rock Lee, Tenten herself, and their master, Maito Gai.
The year Master died, it also happened to be the year of the martial arts meet, she recalled. Me and Lee were going there to test ourselves and we found an inn not too far away. Everything was going well until...
"AGHHH!" Tenten let out a loud groan, yanking her hair in frustration.
"Miss, please don't grab your hair, it's getting messy!"
It's all because of that stupid seaweed! ! ! she screamed in her mind. That night, why did I go steal food from the kitchen?! (Because she's poor, that's why.)
The last thing she remembered before waking up in a new body was ravenously gulping down a plate of seaweed she had found in the hotel kitchen then falling unconscious not long after.
When she opened her eyes, she had become a weak noble lady who could not do anything with her hands.
She held out her new palms to inspect them once more.
Not a single callus... she marveled. So delicate...
That was not all, there also seemed to be some sort of time jump she experienced. Glancing at the calendar, it was now nearly two years in the future from when her last memories took place.
Now, I probably can't even win against this maid, Tenten huffed.
Said maid peered over at her, eyes filled with concern, before going back to repairing the girl's hairstyle. "If you have any worries, Miss, you can tell Shizune."
No reply came from Tenten who was too busy sulking in her seat.
After a few minutes of silent combing and twisting and pinning of hair, Shizune had finished. And in good timing too because-
"Miss, the Madam has come," announced the maid.
Tenten turned to face the doorway as a pair of servants led by a sophisticated looking woman made their way inside the room.
Ah, it's my 'mother.'
Nara Yoshino was a small but fiery woman and a commanding lady of the house. She carried herself in a way befitting a minister's wife but without the arrogance or vanity one would expect. There was an air of grace and authority that surrounded her, from the short length of silk draped across her shoulders to the refined updo she wore. Her clothes were quite modest for someone of her standing but they complemented her well, even without accessories- save for the intricate silk fan she carried.
The woman swept an intense, unblinking gaze across the room, seemingly inspecting if everything was in order.
Once her eyes landed on her daughter, however, they immediately softened.
"Tenten, how are you feeling?" Yoshino sat down next to the girl, gently placing her hands on her daughter's face and began to scan it for any sign of illness or fatigue.
Tenten blinked.
"Oh… I'm feeling better now, thank you."
The woman let out a sigh of relief, bringing her daughter in close for a warm embrace.
"I'm so glad," she slid her hands down to grasp Tenten's own smaller ones, "These past few days you've been looking much healthier and you've been eating well. It seems you're ready to go back to school."
Huh? Tenten paled.
Yoshino thoughtfully tapped her chin with the surface of her fan. "It's been a solid dozen days you've missed school. Have you been keeping up with the assignments from the teacher? Before I leave, remember to show your mother."
The perspiration that had been steadily building on Tenten's brow began to drip down her face.
Homework… I have homework? This kind of rich girl has other things to do than just eat, drink, and have fun?!
She could not bring herself to meet the expectant gaze of the woman in front of her.
"I didn't have the time, I'm sorry."
Yoshino raised a careful eyebrow. "Huh. Well we can only hope the teacher will forgive you since you're normally very studious." Tenten noticed her expression sour immensely. "Usually your older brother could have helped you but he's still out picking someone up."
"Oh, oka-"
The woman's face contorted even further in irritation. "I always tell him to let me know if he's going to come home late! Hasn't he learned after all these years? That boy is either lying around all day or worrying me to death! No inbetween!"
As Yoshino's complaints went on and on, Tenten could tell she was not the focus of her attention anymore. She let out a sigh of gratitude as the woman's voice faded into background noise.
"Miss, the carriage is waiting for you in the outer courtyard," Shizune informed. "If you continue you'll be late."
Tenten nodded and stood up, turning back to Yoshino, who was still listing complaints about her lazy son- even adding in a few about her just as lazy husband.
"I will be going now, if you excuse me, uh, Mother." The word felt foreign on her tongue. I think that's the first time I've ever called someone that.
Yoshino considered the girl for a moment before jumping up to catch her daughter in one last embrace.
"My daughter is so cute!" she cooed. "You're always taking initiative, I just wish your brother would get off his butt and do the same..." Her words were sharp but Tenten sensed genuine motherly affection behind them. She said her goodbyes one last time before heading to the carriage with Shizune.
It's gonna be hard to keep up if conversations are always gonna be like this, but somehow...
Tenten thought back to the warmth she felt in her chest after Yoshino's hug.
It doesn't feel so bad.
—
"Are we there yet?"
"Almost, almost."
"But I don't see anything?" Tenten lifted up the bamboo shades of the carriage and took a peek outside before letting them fall back down.
Konoha is always busy, huh. Even though the last time I was here was technically a couple years in the past, it still looks the same. Tenten's thoughts brought her back to the night of her demise, two years ago (though it was only four days to her) in this exact city. Her face visibly darkened.
"Miss…" Shizune's voice snapped her out of her rumination, which she was grateful for. "There are too many people around so the road is a little clogged up."
"It's not usually this busy?"
Shizune shook her head prompting Tenten to ask why this day was so different.
"Apparently, the city's most famous painter, Master Sai, has returned to Konoha. Everyone is waiting to see him."
Tenten perked up upon hearing that. "Shizune, don't you want to see?"
The maid stiffened. "S-shizune thinks… Master Sai isn't much to see." She frantically grabbed a small teapot from inside a cabinet. "Why don't I prepare some tea? It looks like we'll be waiting for a while."
"Hm… is that so." Tenten pondered over the maid's quick change of subject before pulling the cord to the blinds, curious to see the man that had captured everyone's attention.
All the color drained from Shizune's face. "Ah, Miss-" she cried out, horrified to find the girl's body already halfway out the window. I can't let her see Master Sai!
"Master Sai!"
"It's Master Sai!"
The already large crowd from earlier seemed to have multiplied tenfold as more and more people flocked to the street. Exclamations of "Kyaaa!" and "So handsome!" from passing women made Tenten even more eager to see. She swept her head both ways, hair whipping in the wind, in an attempt to catch a glimpse of the man.
"Here, here!"
A strong breeze blew past her carriage as another, slightly more elaborate one pulled up next to it.
"Aaah! Master Sai!"
"Miss, the tea-" Shizune blurted out. She stuck the tray in the girl's face, desperate to divert her attention.
But Tenten's eyes were glued to the boy in the carriage beside them.
The boy's hair, dark and long, carried in the wind like a scarf of the finest silk. He seemed to be about her age, maybe a bit older, but the way he held himself was certainly more mature than someone of their age range should be. He sat staring straight ahead with impeccable posture, not paying any mind to the unruly crowd. It was as if the streets were completely empty to him and something told her he was capable of incredible strength. But that was not what had captured her attention so completely.
His eyes… she thought. They're almost completely white. Could it be…?
She snapped her head back to Shizune, scaring the already exasperated maid half to death.
"Shizune, is he Master Sai?"
"Huh?" The maid chose her words carefully, "No, the one by his side is. Hasn't Miss already met Master Sai before?"
Ack! ! ! Tenten shot her a nervous smile, ignoring the sweat trickling down her back. "It's been so long, I can't remember," she replied weakly.
"Really?" Shizune asked, unconvinced. Even though Miss used to send Master Sai so many poems despite him never answering? Has she finally given up?
Tenten scrunched her eyebrows together as she refocused her attention on the pale-eyed boy. He's not the handsome guy everyone's screaming about? Then I have to see what the actual one looks like!
She craned her neck as far right as it could go, trying with all her might to see whoever was sitting beside him.
"This guy is really blocking the view," she grumbled under her breath.
Finally, she got a good look at the other party. Partly due to her excessive stretching but mostly because her carriage had moved slightly forward.
Ah, I see.
Master Sai was indeed handsome. Although he appeared just as young as the boy next to him, it looked like he settled into his features well. He wore a light smile on his face as he waved to the adoring crowd. She unabashedly took in the paleness of his skin, which was as white as his companion's irises. It contrasted nicely with his dark hair and she understood why the girls in the crowd were fawning so incessantly.
His companion shot Tenten a look from the corner of his white eye and she shrunk back into her carriage from the intensity of his glare. Did I offend him...
"...Sorry," she mumbled.
Sai seemed to have noticed the interaction as he gestured to the boy beside him.
"It's Miss Nara," he murmured, the smile still plastered on his face.
She watched the two discuss something, though it was much too noisy to hear a single word.
Suddenly, the long haired one inclined his head toward her, ever so slightly, and snorted, a small smirk gracing his face.
"Huh?" Tenten tilted her head quizzically. Did he just sneer at me?
Behind her, Shizune couldn't help but cover her face, already becoming red from the exchange she had witnessed. Aieee! ! This second-hand embarrassment is too much! ! !
What the hell… Tenten's dazed expression shifted into one of irritation as she forcefully tugged the blinds back down. Tsk!
"Just now, that was the Minister's daughter, Miss Nara?"
"That is correct," Sai answered.
The long haired boy shut his eyes in annoyance. "Minister Nara is a serious and respectable man. How did he bring up a daughter like that?"
The young artist smiled. "You seem to dislike her quite a bit, Neji."
"Her behavior hinders me from performing my duties as a bodyguard."
"I don't understand such fickle attraction," Sai agreed, still entertaining the crowd with a few waves of his hand.
The bodyguard crossed his arms over his chest. "You say that but have yet to clarify things with her. If you do not wish to say it, I will."
Neji watched the Nara carriage move farther and farther out of sight. "Don't worry. I won't make it too shameful for her."
Notes
(I am writing this just for fun so I really apologize for my English! ! !)
In Chinese, the shawl Yoshino is wearing is called 'pibo' and her fan is called 'tuanshan' !
For pibo, short and wide ones are for married women and long and thin ones are for unmarried women. I didn't know what to call it in English… scarf, shawl, drapes… in the end I settled for silk
Tuanshan is a fan that's round like the moon, representing a friendly and auspicious reunion. It's a very beautiful accessory that can be decorated with paintings, embroidery, calligraphy or poems. Maybe Yoshino's fan has a painting of deer? XDD
There seems to be a lot of unsolved mysteries in this story... Why did Tenten die? How did she end up in Nara Tenten's body? ? What did the original Miss Nara do to make Neji dislike her? ? ? WHERE'S LEE ? ? ! ! (O.O) dundundun...
Sorry for a long note! And thanku for making it to the end :-D