"Gwaak!" Naruto's head bobbed up from the water, breathing frantically. "Gaaah! Why can't I float?!!!"
"Because you're not an ice cream and that spring is not a rootbeer," said Kakashi, grinning. "Hey, that's a cute joke! I better save this for Sasuke later."
"Eh?" The boy struggled to crawl back to dry land. "Sasuke?"
"You see, I trained the prince too."
"Oh." He nodded slowly. "Is he good?"
"Yeah."
Naruto squeezed the excess water from his forehead protector. "Am I good?"
"You're shivering. Better take off that shirt and come near to the fire."
"Sure! But Sir Kakashi, am I good?"
"Whew, you really need to warm yourself up!" said the Starlet, clucking his tongue in overflowing concern. OVERFLOWING.
"Am I? Am I?" asked the blond boy persistently. "Answer me!"
"I have no time to answer!" said the mentor as he threw the twigs on the bonfire. "If I answer you, my attention shall be taken away from this fragile flame that gives warmth to us in this situation. If this flame dies down, we shall lose our source of heat, and we will face the wrath of Konoha winter. Do you know that the pioneers of this village died mostly because of the harsh winter?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Heh. You have no time for a short answer but you spoke a long speech instead. What's that suppose to mean, huh, Sir Kakashi?" His eyes went back to the frozen pool, now sliced into small plates because of his frequent falls.
Wait a minute…
Steam was coming out from the pool, but the ice sheets remained hovering over the water's surface.
His mind then began to work something out. He went to the pool and dipped his hand into the water. Surprisingly, it was warm. The heat must be melting the ice sheets, and yet it wasn't enough to melt the whole frozen pool because the chilly wind renders it unable. The minute the water from below surfaces, the wind would freeze it, and the hot air would be pushed down.
Something clicked in his brain. So the ice remained floating because something was supporting it from below! The pressure of the hot water from below kept on pushing its way up, and eventually get pushed down. It was a cycle, and it focused only on one spot—the surface of the spring.
"I can float too…if I find something to support me up as gravity pushes me down…" he rubbed his temples. "I know!" he cried all of a sudden.
Kakashi, who was watching from afar quietly, smiled as the boy stood by the pool and concentrated.
The boy channeled all his chakra into his toes, willing them to work upwards. Eyes close, he took a step towards the ice sheet.
He felt the ice crack ever so slightly from below his footwear, but he forced himself to concentrate on forcing his chakra to work against gravity.
He took another step, and then another. He proceeded with this until he finally felt grass touch the tip of his toenail. He opened his eyes and looked around. He was already on the other side of the pool. He looked down just to check, and slowly grinned. "Woah…" He was floating some inches above the ice sheet! "I…I…"
"You did it, man," said Kakashi, who suddenly appeared in front of him. "Good work!"
"G-Good…" Naruto nodded slowly. "I'm good…"
"Uh-huh."
"YAY!!!!" Naruto happily leapt, celebrating his first real victory in the formal chakra training. "I can float now!!! Yay!!!"
The mentor grinned. "Yeah, but now, I hope you can swim too."
"Eh?" With all his cheering he forgot about his hold on his chakra flow. With that, he dropped back down on the pool again.
"Naruto, our second lesson will be about not losing concentration. We'll start on that tomorrow. But now…" He held his arm out towards him. "It's time to rest."
The boy eagerly reached for his hand, and the mentor pulled him up effortlessly.
"I'm good now, am I not?"
"Yeah, you're good."
"So you think I can make a good Hokage, huh, huh?"
"Oh man, you really need to sit by the fire now. You look so cold—"
"Wah! Sir Kakashi, answer my question!!!"
……………..
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter dedication: Usagi-mun. Check! - Happy reading!
Messages:
Fluffy Inc = Basta nagbabasa ka lang at napapasaya ka ng binabasa mo, solb na ako, kahit alang reviews Misyah though!
Mendori-chan = kaya pla lagi kang ala sa YM [naliwanagan]
Jaid Skywalker = I'm very happy that the fic inspired you to brainstorm another project. Well, good luck with your writing!
Kaguara = I'm not sure if you have reached this chappie already since you said you had to finish Witch Hunter Robin, but I do hope that you will soon acquaint yourself with Naruto anime/manga. Very, very good series! Well-developed characters and exciting ninja battles, as well as humor and romance and Sir Kakashi too. [grin] Thank you for giving in to your curiosity and reading one chapter of the fanfic.
Jiri = Hai. I always see those kinds of rabbits (white fur and red eyes). The only time I saw a black and blue combo rabbit was when I passed by the toy store. [sigh] Ah well, I would have to stick to Gai-Gai my honeybunch. [hugs her kitty]. Ugh, and Tenten has no surname? Oh dear, Kishimoto-sensei would just have to make a way to attach Neji's with hers! [wink]
White Witch = Actually, former EIC ako ng iskul paper kaso graduate na me dun, at kapatid ko nag-try p lng dun. Nweiz, sideline ko ung editing ng iskul paper, and at times, being the ghost writer. Para may pang-load ako sa Chaos Hybrid Pari ko. -;; Oi, good luck sa try-out mo sa iskul paper! Go, go girl! Ay, at tsaka nakalimutan kong i-mention na kaya Hero Angeles ang tawag ni Kiks (sis ko) sa kuting naming c Gaara-chan ay ayaw na nya na puro anime pangalan ng mga alaga namin. Natutuliro daw cya na may tinatawag na "Shino" o kaya "Horo Horo" or even "Kanipan". Kaya cya, may sariling tawag sa mga kuting – Sandara, Hero, Patrick, tsaka Rainier. There! Sana naliwanagan na po kau he he he
Waff = Salamat sa sympathy mo. [hikbi] Pag tumama ako sa lotto, pwamis, bibilhin ko ABS-CBN at MERALCO sa kanila, para kontroldado natin ang sandaigdigan [insert manyakal laughter hir]. Ibalik ang Naruto, kahit weekends lng, parang Shaman King!
TenTen Hyuuga = thanks for answering my query! I guess Tenten's surname here is up to me .
………………
Akimichi Choji struggled to run after the restless Konohamaru as the kid searched the hallway for his beloved grandfather. "Hey, slow down, kid!"
"I want my Grandpa! He promised me that he would play with me!"
Choji inhaled deeply—he remembered what Shikamaru said: only diplomacy could win in this situation. "Well, you would have to wait until later—"
"I want now!"
"Your grandfather is in a closed-door meeting now—"
"Then open the doors!"
"We can't do that!" said Choji, raising his voice too. His resolve to be as calm and diplomatic as Nara Shikamaru was slowly dissolving.
"WHY?" yelled the child back.
"Because it's LOCKED!!!" he finally screamed, uncaring if the child was the grandson of the respected Third Hokage. He was still a spoiled brat.
"Well, FIND the KEY!"
"There is NO other KEY!!!"
"Then MAKE ANOTHER ONE!!!"
"BRAT!" yelled Choji. Obviously, his calm had flew out of the Hidden Leaf palace windows already.
"FAT!" yelled back Konohamaru.
"WHAT?!!" Choji clenched his fists. THAT was the last straw. Rhyming madness or not, nobody makes fun of his body proportion and gets away with it. "DIE!!!" He turned into a giant ball, and was about to run the kid down when ribbons stopped him.
Tenten stood by the doorway, holding her ribbons, an eyebrow arched. "You know that it's against the palace rules to kill kids."
Konohamaru's eyes twinkled when he saw her. "Hey, a girl! Hey you, could you lend me your bra? Grandpa and I need it to play a game."
The female blinked, and then scratched her head. "But of course, there is always an exception to the rule."
"Does that mean you don't have one?" asked the lad, wide-eyed.
Behind the female mage, Neji smirked. "And you bothered to ask, kid? One look at her chest and you know that the fabric will fall off."
"Shut the hell up, Earl Hyuuga Neji," hissed the magician, slightly insulted. She was tall, lean, and flat-chested, but she knew puberty was not yet done with its work.
Or was it?
Shaking her head, she decided to just turn her attention to the boy. "Listen, young man, I don't know what you and your Grandpa will do with those intimate wear, but if you want mine, you would have to fight me first."
Konohamaru blinked, and then smiled slowly. "Are you challenging me?"
The mage grinned. "Smart boy."
"Miss Tenten," said Choji, who had returned to his normal form. "You told me not to kill him, but you will fight him?"
She smiled. "He looks like a worthy opponent to me." She turned to the boy. "Attack me as if you want to kill me."
Konohamaru promptly nodded and launched an attack. "Yaaah!!!"
She easily avoided him, and using her ribbons, she camouflaged herself.
"W-Where is she?" the boy looked around frantically.
"Right here." She appeared behind him, using her point finger to balance herself in the air as she held her equilibrium with only one chakra-filled finger.
Choji was astounded. "Wow…so cool…" He had always failed gymnastics back when he was still in Asuma's physical education classes.
Neji shrugged. "Show-off."
Tenten gracefully tumbled down and used her leg to trip the boy, making Konohamaru land on his face. She got up. "Hey, get up. I know you still can fight."
"No need to tell me that!" He pressed his hands together. "I will now use my final technique! You are the first opponent of mine who will see this!"
"Really?" said the mage, intrigued.
"Yeah! Because you're my first opponent." Konohamaru did his quick hand movements, and smoke screen filled the hallway.
Tenten looked around, her eyes searching for the chakra source. But damn it, the kid was well-trained on hiding his chakra. When would he attack? What would be his attack?
However, the smoke had cleared already, but he still wasn't attacking. She looked around, and then sweatdropped.
Konohamaru was lying on the marbled floor, fast asleep. She knelt down beside him, laughing softly. "So that's why I can't sense his chakra…"
Neji groaned. "He used a sleep smoke bomb, but he fell asleep with his own trap. Idiot."
She gently lifted the boy up and carried him on a piggy back, the way she used to carry Lee when he was too weak to walk every time he foolishly challenged Neji to a predictable battle when they were still kids.
The boy slowly opened his eyes, and then grinned sheepishly. "I lost…"
"You need to train some more," she said, smiling.
He paused, and then touched the corner of her lips. "Wow…"
"Hmm?"
His eyes twinkled. "You're cute, onee-chan."
Her heart nearly melted. It was almost the same thing that Lee would say whenever she carries him on her back.
"Will you wait up for me, onee-chan?" he asked. "When I grow up, I'll marry you."
Tenten laughed. "Oh, but then, I'm already a very old lady."
"Grandpa is a very old man, but his smile was no different from the smile my father and mother talks about." Konohamaru grinned. "Oh well, we'll fight again some other time, ok?"
"Sure!"
"I'll train harder!"
"That's right!"
"Then maybe I'd marry you?"
"Maybe. We'll see," she said, laughing again.
"OK. But for now…" he yawned. "I think I'd sleep…" He buried his head on her nape and closed his eyes. "G'Night…"
Choji was about to take the boy when Tenten shook her head. "No, I'll be the one to take him to his room. Just inform his grandfather that he's resting," she said.
"No problem!" Choji headed for the main hallway to check on the Starlets and the Third. Meanwhile, she trudged towards the second floor, where her quarters lay. She felt Neji follow her quietly, but she didn't make any comment.
At last, she arrived in her bedroom. She placed the child on her bed and tucked him in. She carefully removed his goggles and headgear and set them aside, and then smoothed the mass of hair with her palm.
Neji sat down across her, watching her still. After a moment, he spoke up. "Mother hen instinct at work?"
"Ssh. Lower down your voice," she whispered. "Yeah, you can call it that." She shrugged. "I guess I miss the days when I used to carry Lee on my back after your battles…" Her eyes had a fond faraway look in her eyes, making Neji pause.
In her mind, a vision of the small Lee, his nape-long hair disheveled, was sitting on the grass, bawling.
She remembered how she would punch his head, scolding him for challenging Neji again when he knew that he would just lose.
"You idiot! If you want aching muscles then I could have gladly given you those! But challenging that snob…" Tenten sighed when she saw him wince. She quickly smoothed his bangs. "Never mind. Let's just treat those bruises…"
He grinned, and then touched her cheek. "You're the best, Tenten' nee-chan."
"Ahem." Neji cleared his throat, snapping her out of her trance. "You may have forgotten that I'm still here, witch."
"Hey, I didn't invite you here, so don't expect me to entertain you. And lower your voice!"
"Speak to yourself."
"Oh damn!" She slapped her forehead as Konohamaru stirred.
Silence ensued she kneaded his muscles gently to relax him while the earl watched, thoughts unfathomable.
But he spoke them out a minute later. "I didn't know knights had maternal instincts."
"Pardon?"
"You said you were a knight, and that you would never succumb to feminine ways." He crossed his arms over his chest. "You will slay your own dragons and that you despise prince charming."
He knew that?! But it didn't matter now. She looked at his even face, debating what he said was an insult or a compliment. In the end, she shrugged. "I'll tell you something—I still hold that same belief. I am still a master of my own person, and proud of that."
He looked at her for what seemed like the longest of time, and then got up quietly. He left the room, and she was silently grateful when he closed the door gently.
"You don't want to be a princess, Tenten' nee-chan?" Konohamaru opened his eyes. Apparently, he had been awake all this time.
She smiled sadly. "Even if I want to, I can never be one. I'm not sophisticated, I'm not refined, and I'm not soft-spoken. I'm everything a court lady is not, so instead of pretending to be someone else, I found my own path." She sighed. "I want to believe that I had succeeded in being my own knight but…" She remembered Hyuuga Neji and the way he could make her knees buckle with his passion.
"But…?" asked Konohamaru, eyes wide in innocence.
She smoothed his hair. "Listen, Konohamaru. Someday, you'll understand things. But you have to promise me that you should respect a woman above all things. And when you fall in love, give her only the best your heart could." She silently chuckled when she saw the confusion on the boy's face. She should have known better than to talk to a kid about this.
"Sure, onee-chan." He smiled impishly. "Hey, tell me a story so I can fall asleep."
Tenten nodded. "Alright. Once upon a time, there was a young girl who lived in a palace court. She easily adapted into the way of living in the court—that is, of being independent and alone. She was on a different pedestal with the other girls her age—hell, she wasn't even as pretty as them—so she rebelled. She didn't want to become like them who dreamed of princesses. She formed her belief that she was poles apart from them, and she was a notch better, especially when she earned the title of knighthood. She was self-sufficient and contented, or so she believed as she slew dragons after dragons."
"Until one day, she faced the biggest, most fearsome, and most conceited dragon she ever met. It underestimated her and showed her the weaknesses she fought to bury within her. She tried time after time to injure it, but she only ended up getting imprisoned by its claws. She did not give up though—she wanted to inflict at least a fraction of bruise on it, then she would die happily."
"But when she finally succeeded to hurt it, she was not happy. Instead, she grew concerned of its pain and worried for its safety. In the end, she was hit by a realization—she battled the dragon until this point not because she wanted to kill it. She merely sought for a vulnerable spot within it just to convince her that it was not untouchable. She couldn't bring herself to slay the dragon anymore because by then, she had already fallen in love with the fire-breathing dragon." She paused when she felt a catch in her throat. She had summarized all her feelings for the earl in a small tale! "I love him…" she murmured, awe in her voice.
"Did they live happily ever after?" the child asked quietly.
"No," she whispered. "The dragon came and ate the girl up."
"What a lousy way to end a story."
She looked up, startled. Neji was standing outside the door, face contorted in a frown.
Quickly, she composed herself and forced a careless expression on her face. "I'm just being a realist."
"So…you really think the dragon ate the girl up?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.
She looked away, blushing hotly.
"Blushing?" He smirked. "Now I've seen everything."
"Go to hell and burn, Earl Hyuuga Neji!" she snapped.
"Konohamaru?" Ebisu arrived, sweatdropping. He sighed, relieved when he saw the child safely tucked in bed. "Young master! Your grandfather has been looking for you everywhere!"
"Didn't Choji tell you that he's with me?" asked the mage, grateful for the interruption.
"Well, he did come into the meeting as if he has something in mind, but when Kurenai-san offered him finger food, we lost him." Ebisu smilingly carried the lad. "Thank you for taking care of him. He's a little…uh…playful, but he's nice."
"He's a nice kid," agreed Tenten.
"So is Grandpa ready to play with me already?" asked Konohamaru excitedly.
"I believe I am." The Third Hokage entered the room. "Grandson, let's go?"
"Hai!" The lad brought out a lavender brassiere proudly. "Here's your costume!"
"Thank you, child." The old man took off his white hat and secured the bra on his head. "Now UltraMan IAC is ready to battle!"
"Yay!" Konohamaru secured his goggles on top of his head. "Your assistant UltraMan STER is ready to assist you, Sir!"
Everyone in the room sweatdropped.
"Ultra…Man…IAC…" whispered Tenten, sweatdropping.
.
.
.
"Let me go!" screeched Ino, uncomfortable by the steady gaze that Shikamaru was giving her. "We'll talk later!"
"Gah! You're giving me a headache!" He scratched his temples. "Shut up for a moment, will you?"
"Don't order me around!"
"Your shadow is under my control," he said calmly. "So you're going to argue with me in my terms."
"God!" She rolled her eyes and stopped resisting—it was futile anyway, fighting with the shadow master. "Alright, why do you want to talk about us?"
"I've been keeping this for so long, Ino." He exhaled audibly. He had already thought up of hundreds of ways to start his confession, but suddenly he felt his mind go blank. This was a clear evidence of the difference between theory and experience.
"Then spill it out, for Pete's sake!" she yelled, rolling her eyes. She didn't correct him anymore about her honorific title.
"Ino, I…" He clenched his fists. "I care for you…a lot…"
She stiffened, and then tried to laugh carelessly. "I know that already, silly! Now let me go—"
"I care for you, didn't you hear?" he snapped. "I care for you the way a man cares for the woman.." He looked down, swallowing with much difficulty. "…for the woman he loves."
Silence.
"W-What is this all about?" she asked shakily, feeling the lungs of her air dissipate. "Shikamaru, stop this…"
"I love you."
"I SAID STOP IT!" she yelled. "STOP IT, STOP IT!!!"
He felt her every word pierce his heart mercilessly. "INO!!!"
Her mouth clamped shut.
"Alright! I did this because of your father!" he yelled in his last effort to save his pride.
"F-Father…?" she whispered. She then remembered how her
father was matchmaking her with him. "I can't believe he did this…"
Because he didn't. Yet he forced a smile—and good God, this was the hardest
thing he ever did in his whole life. "I'm sorry." He immediately let go of her
shadow, and she nearly stumbled down. He got up and walked away silently.
"Oooh, Father's going to get it this time! He went too far! Don't worry, Shika, I'm not mad at you. We're the victims here—"
He didn't respond anymore. He was too busy containing the tears in his eyes.
Boys don't cry.
But right now he just wanted to crawl under his covers and bury himself deep in it, crying his heart out.
He didn't know a broken heart hurts this much.
Like hell.
……………………..
(to be continued)
