Chapter 2
"Need. Water. Or. Will. Die." I hate laps. I hate the stupid hungover sensei that made us run them. "Here," Daisuke in a rare moment of speaking, was kind enough to pass me the extra bottle he brought. Hm. Maybe he wasn't all that bad.
"Wow. Could you be anymore pathetic?" Fact 5: Don't argue with an Uchiha. Just don't. It's not worth it. You never win. Don't even bother.
"Oh please. Like you're not tired." Oh. He actually didn't look tired. There's not even a drop of sweat on him. Stupid jerk.
"Unlike you, a couple laps don't wear me down," he spoke in his usually cocky way, and knowing better from my earlier mistake I knew not to engage him.
Not.
"That was more than a couple laps, for the record!" Stupid Uchiha.
"...It was two. Exactly."
"Around the village."
"...You didn't even run the full length. I saw you stop and break for ramen." Oh. Ouch. I see my ninja stealth skills still aren't where they need to be.
"I hate you." Oh, and he was preparing his retort, I was so sure of it. But me? Nope, no need to panic. There is Hikaru-sensei now.
"Hm. You guys done already?" He looks like he just woke up from a nap, long brown hair messy atop his head and wiggling his nose like he does when he's thinking. "Well. I guess in that case it's time for me to teach you something new."
Yes. Good bye Hangover!
xXx
Do you know why I became a ninja? Sure if people asked I'd lie and say to 'protect the village' or to 'learn the shinobi way', but honestly, I just wanted to kick butt and learn some badass jutsus. You know why I didn't become a ninja? It definitely wasn't to walk up trees. Why In the world would I want to walk up trees? I mean really, what's the real advantage to that? I want to learn how to fight and stuff. You know, do ninja stuff. I don't want to go spend my time walking up trees!
I don't want my life ending up like this:
"Hey guys. Wanna go see a movie?"
"Oh. Nah. I'm probably just going to walk up some trees."
Or like this:
"Stop. If you kill those hostages, I will walk up this tree."
Stupid tree walking. And well, maybe it's not that lame. Okay. Maybe it's kind of cool. I mean, yeah, I'd love to walk up trees, but well... I can't.
At all. I mean, neither could Hotaru and Daisuke, but well, at least they climbed up half way. Me? I got up to the first branch, fell, tried again, made the second, and held on. I mean, it was a long way down. Shouldn't they teach us how to jump off from high places before they teach us to walk up trees? I want a chat with whoever wrote the 'How to be Ninja' course curriculum.
It sucks.
"You know what I like about you, Mitsuki?" Mitsuki. Hm. Where have I heard that- oh. It's me. Full moon. Yep. That's what my parents named me. But wait. Oh no. Every time Hotaru used my name, I knew an insult was coming along. Oh, I'm too tired to put up a fight.
"Please tell me Hotaru, just what it is you like about me."
"well. I mean. It's just that you make me feel like a better person." …Wait. That sounded… kind of sweet. Could he actually be complimenting me? No. Oh no. Remember the handbook.
Fact 3: When an Uchiha makes an effort to appear kind, beware.
Right. Fact 3. Brace yourself. "Want to know why?" I really needed to practice my glares. They should make him shake in fear, not in laughter. Stupid Uchiha. "Well, it's because you're just so bad at this, that it makes me feel better about myself just by looking at you." That does it.
"You know what Uchiha?"
"What Miyamoto?" That's my last name. No. It doesn't mean anything cool or exciting, and it's not anything mysterious. It means 'base of the shrine', and well, guess where my house just happens to be?
"I bet you that I'll reach the top of the tree before you." Oh, wow. Look at that. Wiped the smirk right off your face. Nope. Now It's back and twice as big.
"Done. Lets make it more interesting though." Uh. Stupid Uchiha. Right.
Mitsuki you can't accept, you know he's going to win.
He always wins, and now you'll have to do his bidding. He'll probably want you to become his personal servant or something. "Unless, of course, you're scared." Pft. Scared? I was not scared. I was so not scared at all.
"Fine. You're on. What is it you want?" Please don't say something dumb like, kunai polisher or something.
"You have to make me lunch. Everyday. For the rest of the month." Oh. Now this is where I have him beat. My family happens to own a restaurant, and not just any restaurant. If you want gourmet eats, Hana is the place. So thus, my mom, who happens to be a chef, also happens to pack me my delicious lunch. My parents also spent large parts of my childhood trying to get me to cook, the shinobi life wasn't what either of them had planned for me.
"Fine. But if I win..." Umm... well, what'd you want? "If I win, you have to..."
"Oi. Hurry up Miyamoto and make up your mind."
"Just be quiet!"
"Fine. Done. It's a bet."
"Huh?"
"You win, I'll be quiet whenever you tell me to," Oh…well… Yeah, that sounds like a pretty good idea. I can live with that. "But if I win, you're making me lunch. Everyday, for the rest of the month." Mitsuki, you gotta negotiate!
"and you have to teach me that fireball technique!"
"...Fine." Way to go!
"You're on." I can't wait to wipe that stupid smirk off his stupid face. Stupid Uchiha.
xXx
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid Miyamoto.
What were you thinking? Fact 4...5...6? Oh who cares?! The point is that it is a fact that Uchiha's don't lose. Ever. Oh, and when you lose... how are you going to explain it to your mother?
"Hi mom. I was wondering if you could pack me an extra lunch everyday for the rest of the month."
After that, one of two things will happen.
Situation 1:
"What? Mitsuki. Do you have a boyfriend? I don't believe this. You have a boyfriend, don't you? Oh! Hoshi!" That's my dad, who she'll just have to tell. "Hoshi! Oh our little Mitsuki is growing up. She asked me to pack a lunch for her boyfriend!"
"Boyfriend?"
"Oh thank goodness. I'd thought it never happen Mitsuki. Not with you playing ninja," Yes. She calls it playing ninja.
"Boyfriend?" My dad again, he won't be able to grasp it. Then when he does... "Absolutely not!" And then he'll lock me in my basement and never let me out. But at least I'll get fed really yummy food.
That is actually the best situation. The second:
"What? I work all day and all night, and now you want me to make you an extra lunch? Mitsuki! How dare you, who do you think you are?! This ninja thing has gone to your head. I want you to go to your room, think about what you said, and tomorrow you can spend the rest of the day cleaning the house!" And yes. Both of these scenarios are possible. My mom's moods are unpredictable. I don't know how my dad handles her.
So, bottomline. I can't lose. I won't lose. In fact, I'm going to go back to the training grounds and practice and practice until I can do it.
But first, I'm going to get something to eat.
xXx
I know it's dark, and spooky and late at night. I know that. I also know how much I'll enjoy the look on that Uchiha's face when he watches me climb that tree to the top. Right. Think about beating Hotaru. Just think about beating Hotaru.
Okay. Now, it's time for me to master the art of walking up trees. Our next training session isn't for another three days, so that's three days of non-stop tree walking. Right. Now, to climb the tree, you must be one with the tree. Right? Well, I mean it sounds right but I don't think that's what Hikaru sensei told us. Well, I can't actually remember what he told us. Right, so go with that for now.
Right. One step, two step. Bond with the tree. Your arms are branches, your feet are roots, be one with the tree. You are a tree.
And now you are on the ground. Uh. Stupid sound. Stupid tree walking. Stupid Hotaru.
"Stupid Uchihas!" Wow. That felt really good to say. I mean really good to say. And it's the truth, but I mean, it was kind of loud. Well really loud and now it's awfully quiet. Maybe even too quiet.
No. Stop. You're in your village. This is the safest place you can be. Right. Relax.
"You do have a bit of a point." Oh crap. Screw that thought. You're not safe, you're in danger. Run!
I turned my head around, trying to pin-point the voice. Spotting the masked figure in a tree, I felt the tension slip from my body.
It's an Anbu. Woah. An Anbu! Do you have any idea what an Anbu is?! Well, I don't really either, but they're supposed to be super strong and elite and go on crazy secret missions.
No Mitsuki, focus. What did he say? A point?
"A point about what?"
"Uchiha being stupid. Some of them at least. They have their moments." Oh score. An Anbu just agreed with me. Best day ever. See Mitsuki, you are smarter than you realized. "However the same can be said about you. Tell me, what is it you're doing outside in the middle of the night?" Well, that's obvious.
"What else do you do in the training grounds?" Gosh. For an Anbu, he's not really smart.
"You mean aside from screaming how stupid you think Uchiha's are?"
Oh. Well played mysterious Anbu man. Well played.
xXx
"Let me get this straight." Right. Go for it. "You challenged an Uchiha to a contest."
"Right."
"And you have to win?"
"Right."
"Or else your parents will lock you in your basement...?"
"Or else my parents will lock me in my basement."
"That doesn't sound very pleasant."
"That's why I'll have to win."
"Tell me, what does this contest involve."
"Tree walking."
"Tree walking?"
"Right. Whoever can climb up to the top of the tree first. You know... I mean, come to think of it. You're an anbu right? That's what that mask means?" He hesitated as if he wanted to say something else.
"Yes. I am an anbu."
"Then... how about training me!"
'Training you?"
"Yeah. Well, how about it?"
"Are you implying that as an anbu, I have nothing better to do than spend my time training Genin's dumb enough to accept challenges they know they won't win?"
"Well, think of it like investing in the youth. I mean… it was a bold move, and if you were to help me I'd definitely win. And, I mean you've spent enough time talking with me so... why not?"
"I was curious as to the type of person that would shout obscenities about the Uchiha clan. However, I feel I must ask. Who is it you challenged?"
"Hotaru, Uchiha."
"Hotaru?" It was as if he tensed for a moment saying the name.
"Do you know him?"
"Show me what you can do."
"Huh?"
"I doubt you have time to be wasting if you want to beat an Uchiha."
xXx
It's really nice to be back and be writing again. As always, please share your thoughts, I'd love to know what you think!
