Disclaimer: Refer to earlier chapters.

Chapter 5: A Startling Announcement

"Welcome home"

He looked at her. She had changed again. Her hair had grown longer and was softly curling around her shoulders. She was still petite, and her gentle curves made her look all the more graceful as she stood there, wearing the traditional kimono of her house. But more importantly than that, she now stood straighter and more confident of herself as she faced him. Every time he came back to the village, he noticed it. And appreciated it. A faint rose touched her cheeks as she waited, and he realised that he had forgotten to answer during his brief examination of her.

"It's great to be back!" he grinned widely, stretching his arms out widely and breathing in the fresh air. Somehow, the air always seemed fresher and cleaner in the place he called home. And is that ramen I smell? He looked around a bit, and then focused back on his welcoming committee. All one of them.

"Nobody else came out here to welcome me back except you?" he inquired, slightly irritated. Sheesh. I go away for half a year to train, and they all forget about me! Bakas. She blushed even further and started to revert back to her old shy pose.

"No…no, it's not that. The Godaime suddenly called a meeting this morning, so most of them had to go for it. And…and the others are busy with their jobs. They sent their greetings, though," she stammered slightly.

"Oh, I see," he grinned. "Well, that's okay. When I'm Hokage, I'll expect all the people whom I call to turn up at my meetings too." He fell into step with her as they started to thread their way through the early morning village traffic. Shopkeepers bustled to open their front doors, hawkers started to set up their stalls, and the smells of food drifting from the restaurants made him realise he was hungry.

"Hey, want to get some ramen?" he asked his quiet companion. She gave a tiny smile and nodded.

"I…I also have something important to tell you," she said, as they turned in the direction of his favourite stall.

"Good. You can tell me over a hot bowl of miso ramen," he laughed. "I want to find out all that's been happening while I was gone." She kept quiet, so he started to fill in the time by telling her all that he did during the last six months, and how far his training was progressing. As he chattered on, she cast small glances his way, observing quietly. He hadn't changed much in the last half-year. His bright orange jumpsuit was a little scruffier than normal, but that was only to be expected after six months in the mountains. It was made of good material anyway, so she was sure it would last much longer than that. The tailor had practically guaranteed it to her when she had asked. She was pleased that he was wearing her present. His hair had grown longer – covering his back with golden spikes. It was held off his face by his cherished forehead protector. His face hadn't changed all that much, except becoming a little more tanned. He was still bouncing with exuberant energy – the same energy and determination that had made her admire him in the past. Her face grew sad, and she put those thoughts away.

They passed by the old ninja academy on the way, and he paused briefly. A big-boned (not fat) man dressed in a chuunin vest was timing a group of young children doing laps in the courtyard. With his other hand, he was digging into a bag of potato chips. Some things never changed. The man in the orange jumpsuit grinned as the spirit of a former prankster rose up in him. He turned to his companion, who quickly changed to a neutral expression before he noticed.

"Hey, do you mind waiting for a little while here? I need to do something," he said, his blue eyes becoming even wider with mischief. She had barely assented before he disappeared. Suddenly, a tree branch broke above the chuunin teacher and started to fall on him. The chuunin noticed it in time, though, and enlarged one of his hands – the one that had been digging into the potato chips – to catch it. As the woman watched, the bag of potato chips disappeared in a silent orange flash while the teacher and students were distracted. She smiled. It was just so like him.

Her companion reappeared next to her, and they continued to walk towards the Ichiraku Ramen shop, eating potato chips as they went, while howls of bewilderment and loss drifted from the Academy.

They finally arrived, and the shopkeepers greeted their best customer cheerfully. It was good to have him back – both for entertainment as well as for their revenues. After ordering, the blond man turned to her.

"So what's this important announcement that you need to tell me?" he asked. "Did the Hokage officially name me as her successor yet?"

"Um…no, it's not that."

"Did your father finally name you as his heir?"

"Um… no. He chose my younger sister instead," she ducked her head in embarrassment.

"What? But you're the firstborn! Shouldn't you become the heir?" he cried, waving his arms about.

"I'm a female. If the firstborn is male, he is automatically made heir. But if the firstborn is female, the leadership of the clan passes to the firstborn male, or the person named by the current leader. And my father has no sons."

"That's still not fair. I think you should have become the head of the clan," he pouted, blasting air through his nostrils in irritation and folding his arms. She was irrationally glad that he still took her side. Then the ramen arrived, and he gleefully tucked in. She ate slowly, delicately, practising the skills she had been refining recently.

"Hey, why are you eating so slowly?" he asked, noticing her delicacy. "Aren't you hungry?"

She grew more nervous. How am I ever going to tell him this? "Um… no, it's not that. This ramen is delicious," she said, for the benefit of the shopkeepers. They beamed at her.

"Then what is it?"

"I… I stopped being a ninja," she said. She hated herself for beating around the bush like this, but she just couldn't bring herself to say it in front of him.

"You WHAT?" he exclaimed, hitting the table so hard that the bowl of ramen nearly toppled.

"Um… since my sister is taking over the clan, my father said that I no longer needed to train in the family's style. He said he wanted me to… um…" she whispered something too low for him to hear.

"So what is it? What does your father want you to do now?"

She told him.

"WHAAAT!" The bowl of ramen really fell off the table this time.

Author's Notes: There you go, for all those who were waiting for them. :-) I actually managed to put three people into this one, for a change. This chapter is dedicated to Red Crow, whose "Second Chances" story far surpasses my feeble efforts.