The Stock is Just Not Good Enough
The next morning Sakura found her sensei sitting by the riverbank reading a book with a banned symbol on the back. `Does that ramen girl know what kind of books he reads? Hey, whatever, to each her own.'
"Good morning, Kakashi-sensei," she said in greeting.
The masked shinobi looked up from his little red book. "Oh, hello there Sakura-chan. Umm, we don't have training scheduled for today, do we?"
`You should know, you lazy idiot!' Sakura replied, "No, I was just taking a walk. I saw you here, so I just wanted to say `Hi.'"
"Oh, okay." Kakashi went back to his book.
`So much for a meaningful conversation, let's try this again.' "Umm, Kakashi sensei, I was wondering…"
"Hmm?"
"Well, when you were in the hospital…I'm sorry I didn't visit you as much as I should have. Was there someone who visited you regularly?"
"Yeah, the nurse and the doctor."
"No, I mean was there someone special who visited you?"
"No medical specialist until Tsunade-sama arrived."
"Grrr, no I mean, is there someone special in your life?" Sakura blushed.
"Oh." Kakashi noticed her blushing and thought, `Well, these things happen. If it weren't for her Sasuke obsession, it probably would have happened a long time ago. After all, I am really cool, though maybe not quite as cool as Sasuke, but I could have whooped his butt at the same age. I'll have to let her down delicately ' He hesitated before he answered, "Don't you think you're a bit young for me Sakura-chan? I mean, I know I read these books, but they only involve consenting adults."
"What! You think… I…! Ewwww!" (Inner Saukra: `No way old man! This is sooo not worth the humiliation! I don't care if I never see his face! Forget it!') Sakura ran off in a huff.
`That was kind of strange. I wonder what's going on,' Kakashi shrugged and went back to reading his favorite book.
After escaping from such an embarrassing situation, Sakura found Ayame taking inventory at the ramen stand before the lunch hour rush.
"I found out for you that Kakashi-sensei is unattached. The rest of it is up to you," Sakura said abruptly.
"What do you mean? That's it? You're not helping me anymore? Can't you find out if he likes me at all?" Ayame was near hysterical.
"Uh, things got a bit a complicated." `No more humiliation! Go find out yourself you pathetic wimp!'
"Please Sakura-chan. Please just find out if he's the least bit interested in me. I promise I'll get you a look at his face…Plus a ramen coupon!"
`Like hell! It's not worth it!' After some thought, Sakura finally conceded. "Uh, all right. I'll try again. But it better be a good look!" `I'm such a sucker for romance. Sigh, if only I could get Sasuke to like me. Well, if I can get these two together…I'll just have to live vicariously.'
-...-...-...-...-
Kakashi heard someone approaching again, someone disturbing his reading again. He looked up from his book in annoyance. His sole female genin stood a few yards away. She was staring at him. "Sakura-chan, I'm sorry about earlier. Ha-ha, my mistake," he said in greeting.
`He hasn't budged in like three hours. What the hell does he do all day when we're not training?' Sakura thought but she said, "Uh, Kakashi-sensei, what I meant to say earlier is that I know someone who likes you." `Why beat around the bush? Mind as well just tell him. That way he won't make the same mistake again.'
"I'm sure lots of people like me. I'm such a cool guy."
"No, I mean, like you like you."
"Huh? You pre-adolescents sure have a peculiar way of speaking."
"Grrr, I mean I know someone who wants to date you."
"Oh really? Hmm, guy or girl?"
"A girl of course! "
Kakashi sighed in relief, "Well, who is it?"
Sakura realized she had forgotten the name. "Uh…her name is…you know her …she's the ramen girl at Ichiraku."
"Hmm, well she does make good ramen, and she is pretty cute...but…"
"What's wrong? Don't you like girls?"
"Hmm? Of course, it's just that… women require a lot of time and effort. I don't know if I have time right now..."
"You've been sitting and reading here at the same spot for hours! You mean you're just too lazy to pursue her."
"Well…" he shrugged.
"Why don't you send her some flowers to show you're interested. That takes minimal time and effort."
"I'll think about it…"
-...-...-...-
Iruka was not normally a man of impetuous action. He liked to think things through first, but he was also not the type to procrastinate. He had plenty of time last night to think about whether he liked the ramen girl enough to pursue a relationship and he decided he did. She seemed like a nice pleasant girl. And since he knew that she liked him already, he did not have to worry about being rejected. So at Naruto's prompting, Iruka slipped away from the Academy during his lunch hour in order to pay a visit to the flower shop. He found a pretty blonde girl sitting idly behind the counter, playing with a strand of hair that strayed from her bun.
"Hello, Ino-chan, you're minding the shop today?" Iruka said in greeting.
"Good afternoon Iruka-sensei. I'm just here for a little while. My mom had to run some errands. If you need any help, please ask."
"I'd like to buy some flowers…" Iruka blushed.
"Yeah, that's why you're in a flower shop, can you be more specific? Who's it for?"
"It's for this girl…" Iruka turned redder.
"Well, I sure hope so. You wouldn't send flowers to a guy, would you?"
"No, well, maybe, but I want to send some flowers to the ramen girl at Ichiraku."
"Okay, what kind and how many?"
"I don't know - that's where I need help."
"You should have said that in the first place," Ino said impatiently. "All right, tell me about her. What's her favorite flower, favorite color, favorite scent…"
"I really don't know anything about her."
"Just send her a dozen long stem red roses. A guy can never go wrong with that." `Plus it's the most expensive item here. Mom will be pleased!' "What about her name? How should I address the card?"
"The card?"
"Yeah, you know `To so and so, from so and so…'"
"Oh, that would be a problem. I don't know her name."
"Do you know if she likes you?"
"Yes, Naruto told me that her dad told him that she told him that she's in love with me."
"Perfect! Then you don't need a card. She'll naturally assume it's from you. Plus the added mystery of a possible secret admirer will make an even better impression! Sigh, how romantic."
"Are you sure?" Iruka asked with a note of doubt in his voice.
"Trust me, I'm a woman, I know these things," Ino replied confidently.
"But you're twelve years old. Should I be taking advice from a twelve-year-old?"
"Of course! By the way, we have a special package plan…"
-...-...-...-
Meanwhile, after her second meeting with Kakashi, Sakura returned to the ramen stand to inform Ayame of the current status of the Kakashi-sensei mission.
Ayame interrogated her immediately. "So? So? What did he say? What did you tell him? You didn't tell him I was in love with him did you? I'd die of embarrassment!"
"Of course not! I just told him that if he's unattached, and if he's looking for someone, that I happened to know that you were available. And if he's interested, I suggested he send you some flowers."
"Hmm," Ayame thought this over, "that's good, very good. It doesn't make me look desperate and the ball is in his court. You are indeed really clever, just like Naruto-kun says. Thanks so much Sakura-chan!"
"Hey, no problem, just remember your promise."
"Huh? Promise? Oh, here's the ramen coupon."
"Hey! I meant his face!" Sakura said angrily as she grabbed the coupon.
"Oh, yes, of course! I'll be in touch," Ayame said excitedly.
Later that day, Ayame received a dozen long stem roses with no note. She naturally assumed they were from Kakashi. `Wow, he sure went all out! These are expensive. What a great guy!' she erroneously thought.
No one had ever sent flowers to Ayame before, especially not expensive red roses. She immediately unwrapped the roses, but then realized she had no vase in which to place them. The best she could do was a large glass jar that use to hold pickled vegetables. But still she displayed them proudly in the middle of the counter for everyone to see.
Since then, Ayame was on cloud nine! Maybe even cloud 9.5! Her ramen was surpassing all human effort! Service with an extra broad smile and a twinkle in her eyes - the customers now noticed that she was quite pretty. Each male customer thought she was flirting with him, that she was treating him special. She gave each customer extra noodles! Extra toppings! Extra condiments! But her father was not pleased.
"Ayame, what are you doing? You're cutting into the profits. Why are you giving everyone extra noodles, extra toppings and extra condiments? I'll have to raise the prices now."
"But we're getting more customers now, aren't we? They're also coming back for dinner. It's a better value for the price."
"Well, that's true. Hmm, I'll have to crunch some numbers to evaluate our profit margin. You know, running a business is like a bowl of ramen. If it's an extra big bowl, you'll have food left over."
"I don't get it."
"You know…it means…it means…it's like the law of diminishing returns, you know."
"No."
"Sigh, the food that is left over is wasted and it cuts into the profits."
Ayame looked at her father quizzically, then changed the subject. "Dad, I also bought a special heating apparatus with a thermal indicator."
"A what?"
"A new pot and a thermometer."
"What for?"
"I've been thinking, that in order to make the perfect bowl of noodles, I'll start with the serving temperature. If we keep the stock at slightly above body temperature, it should be not too hot, more than warm, the perfect temperature to drink. This pots heats more evenly and the thermometer will monitor the temperature."
"You've been really thinking about this haven't you?"
"I'm seriously serious. Now about the size of the vegetables…"
-...-...-...-...-
`Wow, ever since Iruka-sensei sent her those flowers, the ramen at Ichiraku has been amazing!' Naruto thought excitedly as he finished his ninth bowl. Iruka had been too embarrassed to join him at Ichiraku, but that should change soon. When the ramen girl finds out that he, the great Naruto, was responsible for getting the two of them together, why it could mean free ramen for life! That thought excited him more than learning the rasengan!
"Hey, hey, miss, how about another bowl?"
"Another, Naruto-kun? Don't you think you've had enough?"
"Maybe, but I'm not bursting yet. I have to say your ramen is better than ever!"
"Do you really think so, Naruto-kun?" Ayame smiled broadly at him.
"Yes!"
"Well, I'm trying to be the best ramen chef in all of Fire Country. Say, why hasn't your sensei been around?" She tried to act casual but her red face gave her away.
"Oh, well, he's been busy, but I'm sure you'll be seeing him soon," Naruto said while in between gulping down his noodles.
-...-...-...-...-
Iruka had never had much luck in love. It seemed girls always fell for the cool dangerous guys, not the nice honest ones, so he was extremely surprised and flattered that the ramen girl had fallen for him. But because of his inexperience, he did not know quite what to do next or how to act in front of her so he had been purposely avoiding the ramen stand. He needed time to think and to plan. He was now having his self-packed lunch, a couple of plum riceballs, at his desk where Naruto tracked him down.
"Hey, hey, Iruka-sensei, how's it going with the ramen girl?"
"Well, I sent her flowers yesterday and I signed up for a package plan so she'll get more flowers tomorrow and later this week."
"That's it?"
"Well, yeah, what's wrong with that?"
"What about a date?"
"I'm working up to it. Don't worry, I have a plan."
"Tell me, tell me!"
"For the next bouquet I'll include a note asking her out for a movie and then a late dinner or drinks."
"How…boring."
"You think so?" asked Iruka, suddenly concerned. He had taken Ino's advice:
"Now in the second bouquet, you should include a note asking her out to a movie and then dinner," Ino suggested.
"You mean dinner and a movie," corrected Iruka.
"No, no! Why go out for dinner and then a movie? It makes more sense to go to a movie and then dinner. That way you'll definitely have something to talk about during dinner or drinks..."
Naruto insisted, "You're a shinobi. Do something exciting with her. That's what she'll expect!"
"Something exciting? Hmm…like what?"
"Lets see…tree climbing? Mountain climbing? Bungee jumping? Take her on a mission to show off your skills! You can show her the sexy-no-jutsu guy style! Ha-ha-ha! Yeah, that's it!" Naruto started laughing hysterically at the thought of naked Iruka.
"Grrrr…I don't think that's a good idea! Besides, no civilians allowed on missions," Iruka said angrily.
At the tone of Iruka's voice, Naruto wisely calmed down. "Oh, well, what movie do you plan to see?"
"Sigh, good question." Iruka took out the newspaper, folded it back to the movie listings and looked at choices available. `Hmm, if I take her to see "Make-Out Violence" what would she think of me? No, not that one. No rated G stuff, she'd think I'm a wimp. Ok, then PG or PG-13. But PG-13 might have some bad language or sexual innuendo. Can't have that, it might make her uncomfortable. Okay, is there a PG family flick?' "I think I'll take her to this one …"
-...-...-...-
More roses arrived at the little ramen stand. Ayame carefully unwrapped the box and looked for another container to place the new roses. The roses from the other day sat at the far end of the counter. She had originally placed the jar smack in the middle, but her father said it took up too much counterspace and interfered with serving the customers. She settled on an old jar that had held seaweed. She filled it with water, placed the new roses in it, then placed the jar on the opposite end of the counter.
She almost missed the note, but luckily saw it before she threw out the box. It asked Ayame to meet tomorrow for a movie at 9:30PM and a late bite to eat. The stand officially closed at 9PM.
`How considerate, he knows my schedule! I can get off a bit earlier to change. Dad can close up. But what should I wear?' She thought frantically. `Fishnet, what do I have in fishnet. Just one lousy pair of stockings. Okay, what else can I wear? Bandages? Some kunoichi wear bandages around their bodies, but that looks so uncomfortable. And what if…what if things get intimate? It would take forever to unwrap them! Okay, no bandages. Okay, fishnet stockings have to be worn with a dress or a skirt. Hmm, skirt and blouse is a bit less formal. Easier to take on and off too...'
Ayame's thoughts were interrupted by her little accomplice Sakura who dropped by the ramen stand, before running errands, to see if there was any progress with Kakashi.
"Look, look Sakura-chan, he's asked me out on a date for tomorrow," Ayame said excitedly.
"Hey, that's really great! Where are you guys going?"
Ayame suddenly recalled the promise she made to Sakura. `Well, it's the first date, I can't have Sakura tag along yet. Sometime later, maybe the third date. She won't mind waiting a while longer.' "I'm not sure yet. I'm supposed to meet him somewhere… I'll let you know," Ayame said evasively. "Sakura-chan, what kind of girl does Kakashi-sensei usually like? I mean, what should I wear?"
"Well," Sakura thought about the books her perverted sensei was always reading, "he likes girls who are forward with their feelings, tough assertive types who know what they want."
"I see…like a kunoichi?"
"Well, yeah, I guess so…"
Ayame analyzed every piece of her wardrobe and undergarments until she made her final decision - she needed to go shopping! She had less than two hours tomorrow morning before the ramen stand opened.
-...-...-
