She didn't make it in time for dinner

She came back home late at night with mud, scraps, flower petals, feathers all over her along with what seemed to be chicken or even rooster scratches.

With tears and a snotty nose, Fuji came crying to Hyousuke, who was waiting and worrying about her missing presence as she would never miss a meal, especially one made by him. He was in shock, not knowing what to do with Fuji who looks like she's been wrestling with the pigs, and fighting with the chickens, apologizing for not being there for dinner, babbling on about trying her best to make it back home in time but ultimately failing.

So interrupting her ramble, he asked as calmly as he could, "can you tell me why you're covered in mud, scrapes, scratches, feathers, along with leaves, and petals from Yuki's garden?"

Sniffling, Fuji explained how early this morning after she had left home to train with Yasuda, he gave her a task to complete, and she could only come to eat dinner if she had finished it, those were the rules. With only a limited amount of time before dinner, and with the new weights that granny Mai had given her the day before, she couldn't complete it in time, it was simply impossible, with running around across the village from one place to the other, with climbing the tallest tree to falling in what just so happened to be Yuki's flower bed, which set her chickens off to attack, and Yuki was kind enough to help her escape the chickens by walking them away with the broom, she apologized then went to Chi Chi's farm to get the seal she was looking for, but she fell in the pigs mud, than one of the pigs had tried to eat the seal, so she had to fight it for it, then Chi Chi came and saw her wrestling with her pigs and snagged her right out of there, helped her clean up a bit before she went on her way, by then the sun was already setting and she wasn't nearly as done with finishing her assignment, so she headed to the bay to watch the sunset, to catch her breath, then after she was done with that, she left in search of the rest of the seals, each took hours to get, all this was the reason why she couldn't make it back home for dinner, or eat anything as Yasuda had stated clearly that she can't eat dinner if she didn't finish, which meant even store bought food.

Hyousuke, after hearing Fuji's rather extensive explanation, grew angry by the second, so not only did Mai-Sama and Yasuda-San not communicate their training regimens with each other to prevent a mess like this, well he hopes that they hadn't or else it meant that they both were fully aware of their actions, Yasuda-San had the nerve, to say that Fuji-Hime couldn't eat until she finished? And this kind-hearted girl, bless her heart, went through with it with all she had because she didn't want to disappoint him? She wasn't at all worried for herself but more so of his reaction.

That was it wasn't it? Was Fuji scared that he'll be mad that she didn't make it to dinner? He can't tell, and that's what worried him, because why would a young girl worry about the reaction of others? He sighed, then bent down and started plucking out the feathers, leaves, and petals from Fuji's poofy hair.

"Your mother had come home, ate, and went back to work earlier after dinner, Kushina's staying at your aunt Mamiko's house tonight, to be with your cousin Reiki, as your grandmother couldn't make it tonight, she was busy at the hospital, but Kushina, Mamiko, and Reiki had waited for your arrival but had left when it was getting too late. Jun is still here, she's sleeping on the couch, she too was waiting on your return, still is, I think. So come on huh? Let's go wake her up so you can get cleaned up, and patched up nicely, while I make some fresh dinner for you hm? I bet your hungry" Hyousuke spoke softly, finishing off with a small gentle smile, holding his hand out for Fuji to take

Fuji nodded, and instead of taking his hand, she shook her head and sternly waited by the door instead of following Hyousuke into the house like he had thought she would, when he asked what was wrong, she just stared that she was curtly and didn't want to create a mess after the maids had finished cleaning for the day.

Hyousuke gave a small chuckle, "come on, I bet Jun wouldn't mind at all, after all, that woman adores you, I don't think she would have stayed up worrying about you like I didn't if she didn't"

Fuji gave a small smile and dipped her head, her dirty bangs covering her eyes, and she whispered so quietly that if Hyousuke wasn't listening for it, he would have missed it entirely

"Okay... Ojiisan"

He smiled, hand in hand with Fuji, he walked through the open door and went to wake Jun up from her sleep,

Jun's eyes fluttered open, confused as to where she was until she remembered what she was doing before she fell asleep, she sat up in alert, face to face with Hyousuke, and then she heard a small giggle coming from behind where he stood, she looked and saw a tiny mud monster filled with feathers, leaves and some flower petals so bright that it could only be from Yuki-chan's garden. She saw the beautiful teal-colored eyes that she's grown so fond of behind the filthy hair that was stuck to Fuji's face.

She smiled, and gave a hearty laugh, before giving Fuji a big hug, asking her all the important questions like where was she, why was she so dirty, and why did she have Yuki-chan's beloved flowers in her hair. Along with sticks.

Hyousuke looked at the scene with loving eyes, he walked his way to the kitchen with his usual limp, to start on dinner.

Jun took Fuji into the bath, where she scrubbed her with an exfoliating brush that looked like a horse's brush, except it had light-colored bristles.

Fuji talked and talked about everything that's happened, Jun explaining the dangers of wrestling with a pig as she could have died from suffocation or even drowned in mud, it was a good thing Chi-Chi pulled her out of there, because even Fuji at the time when it was happening, knew that there was a high chance of her dying, but that was second one of four that day that she had a near-death experience, and those times, let's just say she wasn't so lucky to have someone pull her put of those situations, but she didn't tell that to Jun, or Hyousuke as she knew it would worry them both greatly.

Flashback:

Fuji ran as fast as she could, which was the equivalent of an injured turtle, where was Ankoku when she needed him? That's right, at war, she cried as her foot got stuck in between some rocks when she pulled on it to try and set herself free, she felt like foot throb, she was in pain, stuck, then she heard it, the laughter coming from the trees, getting closer and closer, why did Yasuda have to put a seal in the monkeys' troop?

She hid the seals she had into the bracelet she was wearing

"OuAHH OuAHH, " they were screeching now, puffing up their chests, hopping, and circling her, she felt fear overtake her, what was she to do? Usually, when the monkeys became bold, Ankoku was there to chase them away and even eat a few, she began digging out her foot as fast as she can, cutting her hand in the process, she stifled back her cries of pain, she kept going, the blood making the mossy rocks more slippery than they already were, she finally dug her foot free, she put her hands under the rocks her foot was stuck under and pushed, trying to get them out of the earth so she could use them as a weapon, with her injured hand it made it harder than what it should have been, the monkeys started throwing things at her, pebbles, sticks, even the filth they made, she dodged what she could in her limited position, until finally, finally, she got the rocks free, she grabbed one, released her weighted seal, and threw it as hard as she could, it hit a monkey in the head, smashing its skull, it's scream hurt her ears, but she continued, grabbing the other rocks that were somewhat smaller than the one from before, she waited, and aimed her shots, she made sure not to kill all of them, just the ones that were too wild, too crazy, it was just a select few while the others were just spectators, instigating the fighters on.

She ran out of rocks, she threw them not only at the ones trying to kill her but at the crowd when they stepped too close into the circle that was keeping her there, her breath was labored, she sharpened her nails into claws, the type of claws that these beasts fear, and she bared her teeth, hissing at them, they fell back just a bit, she felt their fear just for a second, before they started to get more chaotic, the monkeys barring their sharp teeth, she slashed, her nails drawing a deep would across their leaders face, she smirked, hopping on her left leg as her right ankle is still killing her, and holding her left hand near her stomach as it's still bleeding, she sighed, if she gets too close then they might be able to pull a fast one on her, but maybe...

Growling, she barred her teeth once more before she leaped onto the monkey that had turned just enough for her to bite the back of its neck, severing the spine, she carried its body with her mouth, biting harder to make the twitching stop, growling louder and more fiercely, crouching and scratching her nails into the dirt, challenging the monkeys, they started to back off when she came near them, scared of suffering the same fate, with that she escaped.

On her way when she could no longer feel herself being followed by the troop, she dropped the monkey's body from her mouth and sobbed, spitting out whatever blood that was in her mouth, she then threw up, her body reacting negatively to what had happened. The fear, anxiety, and adrenaline she felt, were all just too much for her to handle, especially now with the taste of blood that won't go away anytime soon, the tree branch she was leaning on was near the edge of a hill of rocks, sticks, and fallen trees, it snapped making her fall and roll into the pit. Rocks scalping her body, bruising her, sticks and leaves stuck to her hair, her head hiring against a rock so hard that she had seen the stars, she stayed laid there, sprawled out like a starfish, head-spinning, and throbbing, at least now, her ankle wasn't her main focus.

When she woke up from the nap she didn't know she took, it was later at night than when she first fell, the moon so high up in the sky, the crickets playing their tunes, she couldn't feel her body, she felt stuck, her throat dry, and the taste of blood coming back to her mind, she felt her body repulse, she gagged, forcefully moving her body to turn so that she doesn't choke on her throw up and die, she heard a snap of a branch from in front of her, she tensed, going stiff like an antelope listening out for its prey, she heard it again, holding her mouth with her shaky right hand she looked up, her eyes meeting with a majestic forest cat, it watched her as she watches it.

Both sizing each other up to see what type of danger the other might be to them, the cat moved gracefully, making its way to her. She was in so much pain, she could barely move, just enough to roll over, so what chance does she have over this cat who chases foxes for a living? She watched the cat get closer and closer, until it was right in front of her face, purring and rubbing its head against hers.

She was shocked, but she cried in joy as she wouldn't have to fight for her life once again, the cat was stepping in her puke, but it didn't seem to care, just licked her tears on her dirty face, before it left, she stayed put where she was till she felt that she could move again, she crawled, pulling her feet along with her to sit back against a sturdy tree near the babbling brook, she then saw the cat that was with her catching fish, stacking them away from the water, along with berries from the bushes.

Its long beautiful fur now soaked with water, making it look like a grumpy old man, she smiled.

She woke up once again from a nap that she hadn't remembered taking, the cat pushing its paws into her thigh to wake her, when it saw she was awake, it grabbed one of its fish before giving it to her placing it in her lap, one by one it did this even with its berries, when she didn't move, the cat made a show of biting into fish and eating it, as if to say "here look, this is how you do it human" Fuji smiled, with her shaky hand that she's barely able to lift, she took a bite of one of the fish, knowing which part is edible when uncooked and which is not, she ate all five and left the remaining spots to the cat who gladly finished off the meal, moving on the berries, she couldn't tell if they were poisonous or not, but seeing as the cat didn't die from plucking it with its mouth, well I guess it's safe to say that it's good to eat.

When she took a bite, the juice that exploded into her mouth made her go into ecstasy, her eyes dilating, she felt more awake now than before, no longer was she seeing double, it was as if she was filled with new vigor, she ate all of the berries that the cat had given her, the pain she once felt no longer affected her.

She smiled and laughed, the king the cat, she got up and walked to where her home is, the car following her to the ends of the forest, watching as she continued without it.

She tripped a few times but she stifled her laughter and continued, once she made it to the house she saw Hyousuke waiting outside, sitting on the porch, reading a book with what little light he had, she felt immense guilt sadness for not being able to make it home in time for dinner, so she started crying, apologizing over and over to him.

Flashback ended.

This lead to where Fuji is now, in the bath while Jun her maid, scrubs away all of the mess and dried up blood off of her, uncovering deep scratches and dark bruises with every scrub Jun gave, ah Jun's tearing up, her movements stuttering, is she sad? Why? Why was Jun crying

"Why are you crying Jun?" Fuji asked softly, reaching up to wipe away her tears, unable to connect the dots that were right in front of her.

At that Jun sobbed, holding onto Fuji's hand for some comfort, she shouldn't be crying but she can't help it because Fuji deserves better than this, whatever happened, she shouldn't have had to go through it just for training, but she smiled and said: "nothing Hime, I'm just so happy your back is all, can't a woman cry in joy?"

Fuji gave a small laugh, she knew Jun was anything but happy, she saw it clear as the sky on a cloudless day, but she didn't push, just let Jun continue to clean her.

With each bruise, Jun uncovered, and every wound that bled, Jun suppressed her hiccups, she had to take Fuji 3 baths to get rid of all the didn't that was on her, to get her hair back to the soft silky texture it once was.

Once finished, Jun had Fuji sit on the toilet seat so that she could patch up and clean the wounds, her hands, swollen ankle, the bruises and cuts across her stomach and back, the legs that look like she fell from the top of a tree hitting every branch on her way down, her forehead with had an open wound, a deep enough scratch mark to draw blood, when done, Fuji looked like a mummy.

Deciding to carry her as Jun doesn't know how Fuji can walk with a foot that swelled, they went to the kitchen, so that Fuji could eat Hyousuke's delicious food, which she loves so much.

Fuji dozed off every few minutes when she ate her food, her eyes dropping and head falling back before she catches herself and eats some more.

It made Hyousuke and Jun both worry, so after Fuji finally finished her last bite that she seemed to fall asleep mid-chew, Jun took Fuji and tucked her into bed to rest.

Giving a kiss on her head, she whispered to Fuji "Oyasumi"

Jun turned and walked to where Hyousuke was standing in the doorway, he sighed, and Jun shook her head, both walked out of the room, closing the door behind them, Hyousuke put on his shoes and went into on his way to his respective home.

Jun staying behind to take care of Fuji just in case she breaks fever or something. Sleeping on the couch once more, for some well-needed rest.