Naruto Fan Fiction!
Adventure! SI-OC!
(Title)
"A Song for Them"
A/N: So, so, SO LATE! Urk. Not too much to say here, I know you want to get on with the chapter already. Go ahead, enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own 'Naruto' or any of the cannon characters! There would be a lot more hugging if I did. Trust me.
WARNING! RATED M! Prepare yourselves, we have some seriously sweet overload. Excuse me while I go brush my teeth. And some language, too.
Exam Deux Arc,
Chapter Forty-Three: "Sweet Thaaang"
"Your smile is literally the cutest thing I have ever seen in my life." -Yuno Hoo
Neko was mad.
That was the most clear thing about my little predicament. The second most clear thing? Anko gave zero-fucks about giving people the wrong impression. That's why she still had her arm wrapped around my neck and was pressing me closer to her. I just want to make it explicitly clear that I was beyond uncomfortable with this.
"You are... Mitarashi Anko, correct?" Neko asked, tone deceptively polite. But I could feel how heavy his gaze was when his eyes landed on arm around my neck, I felt a bloom of affection when I sensed a spark of anger in his usually Soft and Steady chakra. Haah, I love my Neko.
Anko was nonplussed but I could tell she felt the underlying hostility by how her muscles tensed and her smile widened, I only noticed these subtle things because of her continued invasion of my personal space. She settled back into the booth while keeping an arm slung around my shoulders as she regarded my ANBU friend. "Yeah? Who's asking."
"A friend of Sora's." he responded shortly, taking the seat on the other side of the table without any invitation. His eyes only lingered on my bandaged arm briefly. The Devil Woman arched an eyebrow at him but didn't say anything. I took the chance and made my body limp, sliding off the seat before darting under the table and coming up on the other side of Neko.
I then proceeded to glomp onto his arm, nuzzling my cheek into his clothed bicep, trying to convey just how bad of a day I've had. I only winced minorly at the reminding bruises on my face and the rest of my whole body as I did. The man stiffened up noticeably but overall just ignored the blatant display of affection, which was actually pretty impressive considering this is our first time together in public ever! Which raises the question of why he was here in the first place. It was so strange seeing him in the standard Konoha uniform! I mean, I've caught a rare glimpse of him in sweatpants and a tee when I ambushed him on his medical leave but the man practically lives in his ANBU armor all the other time. So why the change in attire? A special occasion? Oh! Was he on a date, or on his way to one?
'What are you doing here? Hot date?' I signed, very much ignoring the snort of laughter from the other side of the table. Right. She can understand what I say. Another thing to talk to my dear Neko about. I had released my grip on his arm long enough to ask him what he was doing here before cuddling right back into his side and shamelessly soaking in the feeling of his comforting chakra surrounding me, by now both of Anko's eyebrows have raised up at the scene I'd made. I looked up at him expectantly, hoping it was a date and I could maybe meet the girl Scarecrow might've been talking about. I hadn't even known that there was another consistent female presence in Neko's life beside me.
"Actually..." he cleared his throat, his dark brown eyes darting up and away from mine. That wasn't a good sign. "...Ogura-san and I aren't seeing each other anymore."
Oh, Neko...
I let out a sigh as I shook my head, still clinging to him. He frowned defensively as he caught my expression, "What's that look for?"
'Another one?' I signed, my exasperation clear. That was the third girl in the last seven months! And if finding a nice girl who could put up with his erratic scheduling isn't hard enough, things get even more complicated when you factor in his commitment issues, to relationships more specifically. Neko takes his professional commitments more seriously than anyone I've ever met but for all that I've heard of his social life and dating in general? Let's just say that Kakashi-sensei had it right to call them misadventures. 'What about the one Scarecrow mentioned?' I asked, vividly remembering my sensei's words from after I woke up in the hospital. Maybe I can get more information about the girl this way. Never mind that I'm using my old friend as a welcomed distraction and buffer for any further form of 'bonding' with the Snake Woman across from us. I've had my fill for the day, thank you very much!
On cue, my Neko's pale face tinted a delightful shade of pink.
Bingo.
He tensed and even tried to scoot away from me a bit. Tried being the operative word. I still wasn't done with him. "A-Ah, Sora, please ignore everything that Senpai said to you concerning that... matter the other day. He says misleading things like that all the time to try and get to me."
'I understand.' I signed, he looked grateful. Haah, my dear, clueless Neko. I wonder what makes him think that I'll be any more merciful than Kakashi? I grinned cheekily up at the man, 'You are playing hard to get with Scarecrow, I support you.' his eyes widened hilariously large and I gave him a thumbs-up to his growing mortification.
"Sora!" he squawked. My shoulders began shaking with laughter as his mortification only increased. I was actually enjoying his discomfort immensely. It was helping me forget the day's events. He glared at me then, petulantly like a little kid! My amusement only doubled! He makes this way too easy.
"Adorable." drawled a bored and feminine voice.
I blinked, reminded of my current surroundings, my smile wilting as I looked back at the flushed face of the Devil Woman. She had an unsettling glint in her observant eyes as she looked at the two of us, even as she gave off an air of; 'Couldn't give a fuck'. I scowled as she blatantly started eyeing up my ANBU friend. I resumed my earlier clinging, feeling more than a little possessive at the moment. A glance around the room reminded me that we were still in a bar and surrounded by ninjas on all sides. Right. They weren't outwardly showing it but I could faintly sense that we were drawing attention. I didn't like attention.
"As intersting as seeing -hic!- this..." Anko vaguely gestured at Neko and I, slurring her words as she continued. "whatever the hell you two are, is, -hic!- I'm one more dhrink away from spilling my sick all overr this fine establishhmints -hic!- floor... Brat, be at the same Training grounds around dawn-ish, we can pick up where we left off then." she aimed that predatory smile at Neko. "See you 'round, Stranger."
Neko frowned as Anko attempted to get up and stumbled over her own two feet. I narrowed my eyes at her, an unhappy thought came to mind as she eyed me. Does escorting my very drunken -or pretending to be. I was still suspicious about that- substitute teacher back to whatever den of horrors she called home count among my responsibilities? Because I wasn't entirely sure how I felt about that.
No, wait, I did know. I didn't want to. Bye, Devil Woman!
"Um, Mitarashi-san, do you need help?"
Ugghhhhhh... Why, Neko? Just why? Damn your well-meaning concern! Anko grinned, eyes darkening and I'm pretty sure Neko just regretted speaking up.
I glared at the cobblestone road leading out of the Red-Light District, ignoring the the obnoxious and drunk woman that was blatantly undressing Neko with her eyes at this point as we headed towards, and I quote; 'Somewhere on the West side.' There was over forty-eight miles of ground considered the 'West Side' of Konoha.
Before I could snap at the infuriating woman's answer Neko had stepped in and asked the Devil Woman a couple of questions and managed to reduce the search radius down to a half-mile stretch of residential area on the lower side of the Merchants District. Neko confessed to me that he was pretty sure that was the right place because he knew for a fact that some members of the Intelligence Division like to ghost around there because the apartment leases were reasonably short. Now, I was stubbornly standing in between Anko and Neko, keeping her from drooling over him -it's not like I couldn't blame her. But I wasn't feeling generous enough to share how adorable my Neko was with her- when I spotted something that alarmed me.
There was a girl a head-and-a-half shorter than me wandering the neon-lit street with a lost look on her face. Besides being a tween in the Red Light District, it was her very eye-catching red hair that had my full attention.
It was little Karin.
Karin was wandering around the Red Light District at night.
So many things wrong with this situation.
Neko made an aborted call of my name after I ditched him but it morphed into a choking noise as Anko closed the distance and begun to take advantage of her inhibition-less appearance. I knew by now that she wasn't nearly as drunk as she was acting, I could sense the Intent in her chakra. I walked up to the red-haired girl and gingerly reached out a hand to tap her shoulder, she turned before I could, looking at me with wide rosy eyes.
"S-Sora-san!" she squeaked, obviously caught off-guard. I reached around, looking for where I put my notepad as she stammered, "I-I-I—What are you doing here!? We weren't supposed to meet today, were we?! That's not right! I-It's only been a couple of days—I thought it was next week!"
I smiled soothingly and waved my free hand dismissively at her panicking, finally finding my pad and pen with my other one. I clicked open my pen and wrote, "No, you're right. I was just passing through when I saw you and came to say Hi. So... Hi."
Relief seeped into Karin's every muscle, easing the lines that appeared in her face. She clasped her hands together and meekly lowered her head, glancing up at me shyly one or twice as she murmured. "Oh, then, Hel... Hello, Sora-san. It's very nice to see you again."
Sigh. I felt my heart melt a little. She's ruined any image I've had of her with her shy eyes and rosy cheeks! From now on I will never be able to see Karin more than the little Bunny she is at this moment, no matter what kind of person she might grow into one day. She fidgeted and my mind was brought back to our present situation. Why was Karin wandering the Red Light District at night? Granted, she wasn't alone -I could sense two ANBU over on yonder roof. Both of who became alarmed when they spotted Neko- but this still wasn't a smart idea on her side to wander around a foreign Village by her lonesome.
Please, Terra said, We both know you would do the exact same thing, given the chance.
What I would do was not in question here, and... I was neither confirming nor denying what she said. I wrote on my pad again, "Are you okay? You look a bit flustered. Is there something I can help with?"
She pressed her lips into a nervous squiggle after reading, hesitance and embarrassment swirling in her chakra. "U-Uhm... actually, I... I'm... lost." she whispered.
Ah, yeah. Kinda figured that. I smiled sympathetically at her, "Would you like us to walk you back to your Inn? You are staying at the Red Plum, right? I know the way, it's not too far from here."
"Would you!?" she exclaimed, looking beyond relieved. At this point Neko and Anko had stopped their eavesdropping to openly give me questioning looks. Rosy eyes landed on the two adults and she immediately clammed up, subtly angling herself to stand behind me. Neko's eyes landed on the Kusa hitai-ate around Karin's forehead and a number of emotions rose up, suspicion being one of the foremost. He still had a pleasantly polite expression on his face.
"This is Karin," I wrote, "She's my new friend and she's lost. I want to stop by her Inn on the way to the West side. It's the Red Plum Traveler's Inn, by the way."
"Ah, I see!" Neko then smiled warmly at the girl, still holding onto the feelings of suspicion and alertness though. Tch. Ninja. "Nice to meet you, Karin-san. The walk to your Inn isn't too far, if I remember correctly. We'll get you back in no time."
Unlike how I was expecting her to react, Karin hid behind me even further when Neko smiled and became just as wary as him! "I... I don't want to be a burden to anyone." she said quietly, lowering her head submissively. My brows knitted together and I carefully did not frown. It was a moment like this that I wished I knew what happened in her life leading up to here simply because I wanted to know the name of the person I was going to beat the crap out of.
Neko's expression softened, if only the slightest bit. His smile became more genuine as he assured Karin that it would be no problem at all to walk her back, she hastily said her sincere thanks for going out of our way for her sake. Thankfully Anko kept her mouth shut throughout the entire thing and practically ignored Karin's existence even after we started heading towards the Red Plum. It only further convinced me that she wasn't as trashed as she was pretending to be as she continued to make moves on Neko while he tried to hold her up from purposely stumbling or randomly slur over some stranger that was unfortunately passing by. However she did make a reaction when there was a sudden growling of a stomach.
Karin's face flushed as she slapped her hands over her gut. The sound appeared again and she frowned in confusion when she realized it wasn't coming from her. I felt my own face heat up when eyes landed on me.
...I haven't had any food since breakfast! And that damned woman made me run without breaking for even a second! I frowned in embarrassment as my eyes scanned out general surroundings. We were finally on the outer edge of the Red Light District, in Kurobiitaya square, so we had more choices because minor festivals were held here occasionally, so... yep. Got it. I tapped Neko on the shoulder.
He arched a brow as he looked down at me.
I jerked my head towards the vendor on the side of the street.
He looked between me before looking at the vendor. He made a face, scrunching up his nose in distaste. When he looked back at me, he subtly shook his head no. Denying me.
I frowned, stopped walking and pulled out the pockets of my pants to tell him that I don't have any money on me right now. Besides, it wasn't all for me! I'd share!
He frowned and gave me a look.
I could swear that was the same look he gives me when he catches one of my late-night fridge raids. It practically radiates disapproval of my diet and choices in general. Maybe I'm just imagining it. He actually did give me a lecture on proper eating habits one time... while I'd been eating something meat-like and fried that I found in the fridge. It'd been delicious.
I stared.
He stared.
I widened my eyes, making them shinier and more innocent-like. I hoped I wouldn't have to use these measures but—dammit! I don't have any cash on me right now and that girl needs food to be stuffed in her face! I began to jut my bottom lip.
Seeing my look, his expression cleared, wiping every trace of emotion off of it as he tried to use his 'ghouly eyes' on me. Ha! I wasn't scared of ghosts! Who did he think I was? Naruto?
Bad news is, he's gained a prolonged tolerance to my blatant emotional manipulations.
Anko groaned suddenly, breaking our contest of wills. "Oh, fuck—I'll get the damn food!"
Then she stormed past us and up to the stand, barking out an order of a dozen-and-a-half fried squid balls. Anko continued grumbling under her breath as she collected the lot of it and shoved a third of the trays into my arms. They smelt sooo goooood! I missed lunch and definitely worked up a mighty appetite running for my goddamned life so this was a beautiful, beautiful gift of meat to me.
Really? A little bit of food bribery and you turn into a puppy, Sky-girl?
'Okay, no. Just so we're all clear? This does not make up for her fudged up stunt earlier. I still very much dislike Anko and would take another teacher over her in a heartbeat. I'd even take the Closet Perv!'
Sure, sure... the brunette mumbled disbelievingly. I couldn't really be bothered because I just took my first bite after giving Karin a large number of them. Haaah... heaven on my taste buds. Was that stall owner a part of the Akimichi? That would make so much sense and be great because that meant it was packed with vital proteins, making it impossible for Neko to food shame me now! Score! I looked over at the red-haired girl beside me and almost choked on a laugh. She had the most blissful look on her face as she chewed! I swear, there were hearts in her eyes. She glanced up to see me looking at her and blushed in embarrassment, she quickly lowered her face so that her bangs hid her rosy eyes from my sight again. The moment was interrupted as Anko stumbled off to the side and began puking up all the alcohol she's consumed tonight plus what little she just ate and I turned Karin and myself away as Neko went to be a gentleman and awkwardly pat the woman's shoulder as she emptied her stomach. After ushering Karin out of hearing range of the well-deserved vomiting, I finished my food in record time and brought out my pad and pen once more tonight.
"So how do you like Konoha so far? Have you been able to do some sightseeing since you got here?"
"O-Oh, well, I actually haven't left m—"
Her words became muted as my head was filled with a heavy and miasmic Intent that drowned the air. It was the Static, but it was diff—Trembling—dArKk—Waiting—KiLlkILkiLL—the air left my lungs as my head snapped up to the rooftops, eyes frantically searching for whatever the hell that just was. I could see nothing but the crescent moon hanging in the sky.
My head was pounding and I had to actually focus to will away the buzzing that manifested in the back of my skull. Great. That's gonna be a thing when I feel threatened now? Perfect. I frowned, still looking for a shadow or something to give me a clue because I... I think that was the Static I'm now certain I wasn't imagining before. It was gone, completely, but it wasn't like it had been before, it was like, like... it was thicker. More pungent. Dangerous, for a fact. That was real live Killing Intent in the middle of the street. Fuck. If that's a person somehow following me and suppressing their chakra so low I can't even pick up on it when I'm focusing...
Addendum, extremely fucking dangerous.
"...w-what... was that?" Karin whispered, voice thick.
It was now that I noticed Karin's hands were wrapped around one of mine in a death grip, there was a sheen of unshed tears in her eyes as she stared un the same direction I had been. Wow. She really was a good sensor. No one else had noticed, not even Neko or Anko had felt that lash of Intent in the air. I looked around the busy street, there were a group of drunken friends laughing and talking like nothing happened as they stumbled out of a bar, a pair of off-duty nin enjoying their date, people just walking down the road without any sign of that Intent. Since the other day I've been steadily ignoring it yet neurotically keeping tabs on it's continued presence so I wasn't surprised by it but... I was officially deeply unsettled.
"Sora?" Neko called, temporarily managing to fend off Anko's advances. His face darkened and he was put on edge when he looked at us. "What's wrong."
I raised the hand Karin wasn't clutching onto to sign in Standard. 'Potential Hostile. Location, Unknown.'
Neko and Anko didn't outwardly react, but Karin's babysitters did. The ANBU were set on high-alert and I even think that Neko signaled them something when Anko stumbled over to us and slung an arm around my neck, distracting Karin and I. It worked. I immediately tried to escape her reach, coincidentally dragging Karin with me as she still was holding onto my hand. With my free hand I signed something hat essentially meant 'screw off' as I let go off Karin's hand to properly intertwine our fingers together. She 'Epp'd'. Alarming me. I gave her an odd look as I continued to tug us down the street and closer to her Inn. If this Static was going to show up around me again than I'd rather Karin be safe and far, far away from it considering she can actually sense it.
"S-Sorry! Just surprised..." she apologized hurriedly, Karin then lowered her head and made sure not to look me in the eyes. "Your chakra is very... erm, warm... 'specially in your hands." Huh? My chakra felt—Wait.
To Karin my chakra has a feeling? Not just a presence? All the other sensors I've met before have never described chakra as haven't a feeling, only colors. I mean, there was that one Inuzuka that said they could taste chakra but even Kiba called bullshit on that. Chakra has a presence that every living creature can sense to some degree, yes, but it's more like knowing about air. You know it's there because you're breathing it. Little Karin's face was beginning to look sunburnt under my stare.
"Is—Is there something on my face?" she asked, quickly raising her free hand to wipe at the corners of her mouth. She actually did have a bit of sauce on her cheek but that wasn't why I was staring. It's just... I've never met someone who could feel chakra like I do. I wonder if she can feel my emotions, too?
Neko cleared his throat. We both turned our heads to look at him, I hid a smile when I felt Karin became a bit annoyed with the man for some reason. He nodded his head and I followed his line of sight tp the red neon sign above our heads. We'd made it to the Red Plum without even noticing. I looked back at Karin to see she was frowning up at the sign, a sadness washing over her expression. She was extremely reluctant to go, but that wasn't all, there was also an underlining of... Fear.
Why would Karin be afraid to go back to her room?
She turned back to face me and I—aw, damn. Now she was looking up at me with those big 'ole Bambi eyes and I broke down then and there. Maybe it had a little something to do with the sake I had earlier, maybe I was just feeling a bit overly Mother Hen-like, but on impulse I reached out and wrapped my arms around her smaller and much too thin frame, pulling her into my chest and engulfing her in a hug and pressing my cheek down on the top of her head. It was very much like hugging a porcelain doll, if I'm being honest. Stiff, yet terribly fragile at the same time. Karin froze up in my arms and didn't make a peep, she just stood there as I hugged her. Even her chakra had clammed up! Like, disappeared! Even though I was clearly holding her in my arms and could even feel her alarmingly rapid pulse, I couldn't sense her chakra. I didn't know someone could do that. Was it a 'Karin' thing? Because she was also the first person that ever straight up lied to my face.
After a few minutes and a pointed cough from Anko, eventually I tried to pull back to get a read on Karin's expression to see if I'd way overstepped the boundaries. It seems like the thing I'd do. Some people are weird about showing affection in this world. It's ridiculous.
Imagine my surprise when two boney hands gripped the back of my shirt, stopping me from pulling away. I felt the material bunch up as Karin fisted her thin fingers into it, her head leaned into my chest and it broke my heart a little. Her already soft voice was muffled as she spoke into my shoulder. "...sorry, Sora-san. It's just... it's been a while since I've been h-held."
Goddamn.
She actually did let out a small yelp as I wrapped my arms around her tighter, making it a real bear hug and trying to squeeze out all that sadness she had inside. That had to be one of the saddest damn things I've ever heard in either of my lives! It actually reminds me a lot of when Naruto was little. He would literally ask for a hug a dozen or so times a day back when we were living in the Orphanage, just to make sure I really cared about him. It hurt my heart like this back then, too. Ooooh! I just want to wrap the little bunny up and take her home with me right now! Kusa wouldn't mind too much, would they?
"S—Sor—Sora-san! I c-can't breathe!"
Oops.
I finally released her with a sheepish smile on my face as she took in a much needed inhale. She quickly averted her eyes as her face began to glow, and not from the neon above us. In parting I set my hand on her head and ruffled her very red hair, making it even messier than it was. I liked doing that. She has nice hair. Instead of squeaking and turning into a tomato like last time she actually looked up at through her messy bangs and gave me the tiniest of smiles.
I felt like I'd just won something.
I waved once more as she slowly entered the the Inn before walking back up to a Neko who was looking at me guarded fondness and an Anko that was snickering for some reason. We didn't get out of the District before I was distracted again. This time by a not-so-nice surprise.
"SORA-CHAN!"
The three of us looked up towards the source of the voice and saw a blonde, orange-wearing ninja jump down from the rooftops and bolt directly at us. At me, more specifically. I was beyond confused and even a bit worried when I saw how Naruto looked like he was on the edge of panicking. Once he was within range he grabbed both my shoulders, gripping them as if to check I was really here before he began shaking me vigorously and talking really fast.
"Wherehaveyoubeenallnight!? We'vebeenlookingalloverforyou'ttebayo! Whenyouweren'thomefordinnerIgotreallyworriedthatsomethingmight'vehappenedtoyousoI—" I covered his mouth with my hand and motioned him to breathe, mouthing the words as well. It took a minute but he eventually took a much needed intake of air.
Just as I was about to remove my hand, cerulean blue eyes just about popped out of their skull as Naruto's hand shot up and pulled my left sleeve back, revealing the bandage around my forearm. He started shouting again, with my hand still muffling his words and I'm pretty sure he was actually panicking now. I looked back pleadingly at Neko, hoping he'd intervene. I was still pretty wiped out from today's strenuous events. I made sure to send Anko a glare, just because. I was disappointed to note that she was half-asleep and literally drooling over Neko's shoulder now. No help from him then. I withheld a sigh as I released Naruto's mouth.
"—WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR ARM!? AND YOUR FACE! WHO DID IT?! I SWEAR, I'LL—" I held up my hand and he stopped out of habit, fuming a bit but can still understand me. That's good.
'I'll didn't understand half of what you said.' I signed, he scowled. 'Take a breath and start over. Slower. I had a long day.'
He exhaled harshly, frustrated and upset but I still wasn't sure over what. It wasn't about my injuries, there was an initial surprise and anger but that was redirected towards something else. I waited as he crossed his arms over his chest and scowled at the ground.
"I got home from training after dark and when you weren't already there, I—...I waited for an hour but you still weren't home yet so I got worried 'ttebayo. But you're fine so I was worried about nothin'!" he mumbled, kicking a pebble across the ground.
I slapped my hand to my face, slowly dragging it down as I realized my grand stupidity of tonight. Kami, I've really screwed up this time. In the next second I had my arms around him and my face nuzzled into his fluffy hair. He smelt a bit like sulfur and a lot like cheap cologne. Gross. He leaned into my hug, chakra still wound up with worry. Jeez, I screwed up tonight. Well, technically it was Anko's fault but I should've gone home already when it didn't look like she had any other plans but to get trashed. I held him tighter, trying to hug away all his worries. This was the going theme tonight apparently.
I hugged him too tight.
One second he was tapping me to ease up and in the next the Naruto in my arms poofed away and I was left an armful of smoke and new nightmare fuel. I quickly rationalized that it was a Shadow clone even though it felt like a very real, very warm and breathing Naruto. I told myself this but it did nothing to stem the tide of my own panic springing up in my chest.
So not cool!
I hastily saluted Neko before mustering up what little strength I had and leaping on to the roof and away from both adults, leaving the poor ANBU in the Devil Woman's clutches. I had someone waiting for me back at home. Neko'll be all right, right? Yeaaaah. Neko is a grown man and one of the Elite! He can ward off the unwanted attentions of the Devil Woman. Yep.
...he'll be fine.
I made it back to the apartments in under a half-hour and as just soon as I stepped pass the threshold of Naruto's door I heard my Hero's voice shout my name. For the second time that night, the orange-clad teen barreled into me, wrapping his arms around my torso in an almost painfully tight hug. His Warm and Breezy chakra was filled with worry and relief, so much so that I felt guilty as all hell. I squeezed him as tight as I could to make sure that he was the real deal this time.
"Where were you? When you didn't come back I used my Shadow clones to go and look for you!" he yelled into my shoulder. "We were looking for hours 'ttebayo! And why the hell do you stink like alcohol!?"
I pressed my head against his in apology. I hadn't meant to worry him but it honestly hadn't crossed my mind after everything else that happened today. Even so, there's no excuse for causing him to feel this way. It's because I haven't stayed out after dark without him knowing where I'd be in nearly ten years. He was the first to pull away and glared up at me as he expected a prompt answer but his glare was severely undermined by not only his height -my Hero was still so short! I should have him drink more milk- but also his puffed-out cheeks and wittle scowl.
Okay, maybe I was a teensy-weensy bit buzzed. Was that good news or bad? Anyways, I harshly stamped out the urge to coo over him, there would be time for that after. I raised my hands and answered him honestly.
'Scarecrow's fault.' I told him without a single ounce of remorse. It really was. He picked a terrible person! 'I met my new teacher today. She's a nightmare.'
"What? What did Kakashi-sensei do?" his eyes widened comically before he suddenly got angry, "Did he get you a perv to teach you, too!? I'll kick his ass if he did anything!"
'Worse,' I grimaced, though very warmed by my Hero's offer. Now that I think about it, Anko is a perv too, isn't she? Yeah. I don't want him anywhere near her either. 'Remember the crazy lady that broke through the window at the Academy?'
His eyes widened and he really, really tried not to laugh in my despairing face. I flicked at his nose because he wasn't doing a very good job being a supportive friend, he let out his pent-up snickering after that. I walked over to the table and finally took a blessed seat in the chair. My feet were killing me.
'Don't laugh. She's worse than Sensei, Hero.' I signed as I kicked off my boots.
He didn't stop snickering even as he also took a seat. "Kekeke—Hey, at least your teacher doesn't spend hours peeping at naked girls from the bushes 'ttebayo!"
'You learn anything new today? Other than about the female body.' His nose scrunched up, almost as if he was grossed out by what I said. Then he opened his mouth and I regretted joking about it.
"I already knew what a girl's body looks like 'ttebayo!" I arched an eyebrow at him while I internally freaked out. Please God, don't let my sweet, innocent Hero be owning nudie mags already. I'm not prepared for it! "—Uhhh, I mean... Look at what I can do!" he blurted nervously, mercifully changing the subject.
I watched as his hands folded into Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey and Ram and felt as his chakra spun, racing it's way through him before bursting out his palm, summoning script spread across the table and a cloud of smoke appeared to reveal...
Naruto groaned.
I stared.
That... is... the cutest darn tadpole I've even seen!
I nudged it's wriggly little blue body and the Hero growled at me for it. "Oi! Cut it out! It's not cute and it's definitely not what I wanted to summon! The Pervy Sage said that I could summon a real badass one if I just—" he cut himself off suddenly, causing me to look up at him. There was a nervous look on his face as an unease settled in his chakra. I frowned.
"Hey... Sora-chan, you... you know a lot about chakra, right? I mean, I see you reading a lot of books and stuff about it so you gotta know a lot, right?"
I wiggled my hand in a 'Kind of' motion. I knew more than the average person because of my sensing but I was no means an expert on the subject. Why? What was this about? We've already gone over the basics of physical and spiritual chakra dozens of times to prepare for the Academy exams. What could he have questions about now? He looked at the floor and traced mindless patterns on the wood of the table. Okay, I was getting worried now. This wasn't like my Hero at all.
I sat there and waited.
"Well... the um, the Pervy Sage was talking a lot about chakra today and he said some things that I didn't really understand." he confessed. So this has to do with Jiraiya and his training, all right. "A person only has... one kind of chakra, right? I mean, there's the two chakras that make one but that's still only one kind of chakra, right? The only one people can use?"
'The spirit and body energies. That is usually counted as one. Yes. As far as I know every one only has the one kind of chakra.' I signed, my brows furrowing at his odd behavior. 'What is this about? Are you having trouble with your control?'
"No, no! It's nothing, really! The Pervy Sage just used a bunch of complicated words and made it hard to follow is all. Hahaha! I-I got it now that you explained it better!" he said quickly, chuckling and smiling even as his chakra twisted with his lie.
He really was a bad liar. It was just another thing I loved about him. The Hero quickly stood up and went towards the kitchen, no longer looking me in the eyes as he began to feel guilty for lying. I smiled sadly at his back as I pieced together what he was really talking about. This... was about the Kyuubi, wasn't it?
It kinda hurt. I didn't have any right to be hurt, but... it stung that Naruto still didn't want to tell me about it. It stung... but it was his secret to either keep or tell. I just had to be the person who was ready to listen when the time comes.
"Hey, it's pretty late and all but you're still probably hungry right?" he asked from the kitchen, glancing over his shoulder. I wiped the sadness from my expression and smiled wider as I nodded eagerly. His grin turned more genuine. "All right! Me, too! I remember it's my turn tonight, so I'll make dinner 'ttebayo!"
I mindlessly swung my feet back and forth as he boiled water and reached into the cupboards. Soon, he handed me the styrofoam cup, steam still wafting out from under the paper lid. My pit known as a stomach growled loudly as I peeled back the lid on my instant ramen.
Barbecued Beef flavor, my favorite.
He sat back down across from me and I thanked him for the food before picking up my chopsticks and lifting up a mouthful of noodles. It had only just reached my tongue when—
"OH MY GOD, SORA-CHAN WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR ARM!?"
...he only just noticed?
"...what the fuck? Is that even a real thing?"
I looked up from the most recent reports from northern border and our assets implanted in the Land of Rice Patties at the sound of a hushed voice cursing in the adjacent office. I instantly recognized who it belonged to. Only thing is; she's been put on medical leave and wasn't allowed to even step foot into the Department until she's taken her psych eval. I put aside the reports for a moment, stepping out of my office and into the large hall where most the officers had desks they never really used. There, I spotted a troublesome woman with a penchant for getting herself into undesirable situations. I moved silently until I was standing directly behind her.
"Anko."
The tokubetsu jonin in question startled at my voice, shoulders rising up in defense. She turned in her chair to face me with a sheepish look on her face. By the smell of it, she was either still drunk or in the midst of a hangover. "Ibiki-taichou... you're working late tonight." she observed warily, probably wondering if I was going to kick her out again. Now why would I do that when it obviously didn't work the first time.
"How's your arm?" I ask instead.
"Fiiiiiine..." she replied, still waiting for the reprimand.
"Mm. And your femur?"
"A bitch, but I'm keeping most my weight off that side."
"What about the skull fracture?"
"...Ibiki-taichou," she muttered, frowning. "I'm beginning to think you're not really asking about my injuries."
I kept my tone even and casual, almost as if I was talking about the weather. "And why wouldn't I be? It's not every day that one of my subordinates throws herself at an S-ranked criminal with suicidal intent."
She winced, my words affecting her physically. Good. She should feel like shit after her extraordinarily stupid stunt. Anko lifted a hand to rub the back of her neck. "Yeah, I know, I know... you don't want me back in here until the shrink says I'm not gonna try and get myself killed again, but I swear, I'm not here to try and snoop out any information on... Him."
"You're not?" I said pointedly, my eyes going to the files she had just been going through. Wait. That was an Academy file for a student. Ah, I recognized that face. It was the girl that made little Ino-chan scream. Sora, I remember her exam from the other day. Why was Anko looking at her file? And her psyche profile, too, from the looks of it.
"Yeah, I, uh... kinda agreed to teach a kid and get her ready to fight in the finals of the chuunin applications."
"Anko, you hate children." I pointed out.
"Don't remind me..." she groaned, glaring down at the girl's smiling picture.
My lips quirked up in amusement. This was not a side of her I get to see very often. I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back, "Why do it then?"
Anko let out a long, begrudging sigh, "It's only for a couple of weeks, just until the Exams are over. Then Hatake'll owe me a favor. You know how hard it is to get that guy to owe anybody one!"
"And that's why you agreed to do it? As a favor?" I asked skeptically. Doing people favors without an immediate return for her wasn't her style.
"Yup." she replied, lying through her teeth. I didn't believe her for one damn second. She started spinning in her chair. "I have a question, completely unrelated. 'Ha-phe-phobia'-Is that a real thing?"
"Haph-e-phobia. It's the fear of physical contact, and yes, it's real. Not common one either." I answered.
"Oh, Fuck meeee." she groaned, running a hand through her hair. I arched an eyebrow at her and she just shook her head. "It's nothing. Just put together the pieces of something." then she muttered something that sounded suspiciously like; '...fucking Hatake.'
Right. Completely unrelated.
I frowned in thought. Was this really the best move for her to make right now? Anko's spent well over the last decade working longer and harder than everyone around her to try and remove the stain on her reputation by her former sensei's defection and the stigma he left behind. So why would Anko risk bringing back all that suspicion and doubt she had to work past and possibly ruin all the trust she's built over the years for a mute kunoichi she has no connection with. Well, no positive connection. From what I've gathered, the girl, Sora, is connected to Orochimaru somehow. I didn't yet know how exactly, but she received the same Cursed Mark that he gave to his former student and then survived it's implantation. It doesn't help her case that her history before coming to Konoha is practically blank, save a small note about her and her deceased Mother being refugees from something. So far, the information points towards a connection between them. And there are no coincidences in our world.
There isn't a doubt in my mind that once others begin to put two and two together, the girl will be treated with the same mistrust that Anko was. That being said, I pressed to make sure if Anko fully realized what she's getting herself into. "And you're sure your decision has nothing to do with the fact that the girl, about the same age as you were, had the same Mark as you forced on her against her will?"
She looked up at me blankly, "Hate to tell you this, Ibiki-taichou, but you're reading waaaay too much into this. She's just some brat genin and I'm just doing a favor. End of story."
"If that were true then you wouldn't be looking up her files in the middle of the night instead of sleeping." I point out, beginning to become exasperated by her denial. If she continues like this then there was no way the Yamanaka was going to let her back on the active roster any time soon.
"Like hell if I'm going to be sleeping any time soon." she dismissed. I narrowed my eyes at her in annoyance, she averted her eyes, shoulders rising up defensively. I didn't have to say another word and she broke, "Gah! Dammit, Ibiki-taichou-Okay, so, I pulled some shit earlier to push her and see what she's made of and I... I... kindofmadeherthinkshekilledmeandshecriedalot."
"...and?" I prodded. Making people cry was quite literally one of her favorite things to do.
Anko crossed her arms over her chest and scowled, looking a lot like the bratty and vulnerable child she pretended she wasn't on the inside. "...she doesn't even know me and she fucking cried over my body. Who even does that?"
"Apparently, she does." I answered. Her scowl deepened and she shot me a glare for stating the obvious.
"Yeah, well, her type was the first to die when we were growing up." Anko remarked before turning her attention back to the girl's files, mumbling curses under her breath about the point of these if they were wrong.
Well, if she was so determined then there wasn't much more that I could say to her. It was her decision. I turned and walked back to my office with a warning to the woman not to let Isamu or someone else catch her in the department without her clearance. And that no, she couldn't bullshit her way through this one. She made a sound resembling acknowledgment.
I shook my head as I picked back up the reports on my desk. Kami help the girl, Anko actually cares. In the lowest form of emotional attachment the cynical and emotionally closed-off woman was capable of, but still... it eased some worry inside of me to see her trying to cope with her own issues through the girl vicariously. Hopefully, this whole thing will be good for Anko in the long run.
I just hope for her sake that she doesn't end up accidentally killing the girl with her good intentions before the month is up.
Exam Deux Arc,
Chapter Forty-Three: "Sweet Thaaang"
END
A/N: Soooo... this took forever and a day. Sorry. I tend to get kinda depressed around the New Year's so I couldn't figure out what I wanted done in this chapter for the longest time. Also? It's just too damn cold outside. I don't do well in the cold.
But, it's finally done now! Lots'a things happened, yeah? Let's see, we had Neko teasing, more spotlight for Drunk!Anko who doubles as Flirty!Anko. KARIN SHOWED UP! The Static is becoming an issue. Naruto got to be adorable and we had a little fluffy time there. Sometimes I worry that I haven't properly shown how deep a bond Naruto and Sora have developed so I'll try to showcase that more in the coming chapters along with... other things. Then we got another Ibiki POV! It actually kinda surprised me that he just came outta nowhere and demanded his POV get shown again, though, I do like him and I think he definitely deserves more cred. I also like how unconnected he is to Sora and can look at everything completely without bias compared to everyone else that I usually do.
Annnd... I think that was about it. I didn't miss anything, did I? I feel like I should gush a bit on how too damn adorbable Karin's scenes are coming out. She's just so cute like this!
Author Question!
"An actual Author Question in relation to the story this time; Who's POV do you like reading so far and who would you like to see me write in the future? Or see more often?"
My favorite so far has got to be Sora simply because it's writing how I would honestly react in that kind of situation. Just with a lot less mental issues. Got all the emotional baggage though. But other that her? I really like doing Kabuto for some reason. Him and Dark!Sora/Darth Sora/IT.
Crazy is fun.
Alright then, I wuv yew all! 'Till next time, luvs!
-Nanami