Chapter 5

"Blah" English

"Blah" Japanese

Living in our new home, came with a new routine. I couldn't just practice my exercises with a new highly trained Anbu watching me everyday, so I took pains to try and conceal it. In the mornings I would take long showers while the kids were still asleep. In these showers I would do my regular physical exercises with some add ons.

Now it was push ups, crunches, squats, stretching, pull ups( I used the bar in the bathroom the held the curtain for the tub) yoga, breathing exercises underwater and above, and I had the chance to practice with my chakra there. I worked on my water walking.

At first I was really worried it would be obvious I was doing it, but since there was no windows in the bathroom, and I doubt the Anbu would invade a girls privacy like that unless they were a pedophile even then I'm sure they wouldn't want to be found out.

I decided to forgo wall walking all together for the water instead, call me stupid but I believe that doing the hard stuff first.

The first time I tried to walk on the water, my foot slipped and I fell. It was painful, the hard tile's of the tub digging in to my back as a reminder, but I got up again it did it again.

I practiced everyday, it took close to two months for me to even stand above the water for more than a minute. I was doing it though, and with each passing day I knew I got better.

I no longer had trouble carrying either of the kids at the same time, I could run faster, I could actually track the numerus ninja jumping from roofs around the village with my eyes. My body became lighter, more leaner my legs lengthening making me taller, not by much but still.

My chakra grew, I'm pretty sure because I could use it more and more often throughout the day without getting tired. The filter that I had looked through to sense chakra around me widened and grew, letting me see civilian adults to academy and genin ninja. I still had trouble sensing for experienced ninja, that had grown accustomed to concealing their chakra.

I would always take a really good shower after working out, because working out naked wasn't so bad as feeling all my sweat everywhere, I mean everywhere making my skin sticky and slick, it was just gross.

Living with Ninja literally watching your every step was unnerving. Constantly I found myself feeling their eyes watching me, peering at me, not being within sight but there. It aggravated me to no end.

If I was feeding the kids, sometimes having a harder time with Naruto to get him to eat his peas then Hana, I knew they were there in the shadows.

For Anbu that were supposed to be guarding "cough" watching "cough" me, The didn't like to interact with us. I was seemingly alone most of the time, other then leaving to shop for food or visiting the unused training grounds that I had a closer escort to my destinations.

Most times that escort was a green masked anbu, by the name of Beast, and believe me his masked looked like a beast, fangs and all. Wolf always seemed to be too busy to escort us anymore. Not that I minded, just he was semi-familiar to me, I felt a lot safer with him than anyone else for some reason.

I also practiced learning more and more each day. As well as trying to get Naruto and Hana to start talking but, as infant's that was a slow and grueling process that required patience as their small little brain's grew and matured.

Thus I often after giving them a speech lesson set them down for a nap, then started on more training for my own brain. I finally was able to semi fluently read the kanji without to many problems. I studied up on all fuuinjutsu,taijutsu,genjutsu, and any medical jutsu's I could find in the library, at a civilian level, after I had completed reading the first year academy's student's book's.

Most of it was just on theory not the practical application of the use of each jutsu. It did help me come up with a practical way I could stealthy practice my application to fuuinjutsu though. As I practiced my kanji, I practiced writing out seals.

This helped me tremendously, I got even better at talking in japanese and reading it while I got the regular explosive tags down, since they were all pretty similar, It wasn't my own style by any means but if I ever needed to scare someone or blind them, I always infuse chakra into a tag and set it off with an output like a tiny firecracker.

Making them blow was the hard part though. Since I had to sneak them into the bath with me in the mornings. I had to manipulate my chakra to set off a small explosion and not alert the anbu. How I was going to do this though..Well I had a few ideas.

I started my experiment by lasing as much chakra as I could slowly to the tip's of my fingers. They glowed a light blue hue, giving me a tingly sensation that I could feel down to my core. It was exciting, and I could feel the chakra wanting to move away as it barely stayed to my fingers.

It was so instancing, my vision blurred as I concentrated on moving the chakra to hover over the paper bomb in my other hand. Gritting my teeth I pushed the concentrated chakra into the paper willing it to become what the kanji written there.

At first I thought it didn't work and the tag was a dud, but then I was suddenly pushed backed sharply, my body flying into the bathroom wall. Pain erupted in my lower back as a fire flared to life on top of the tubs water. It hurt so bad I didn't move till the fire had stifled itself in the water.

I coughed wheezing as I tried to crawl from the wall. Oh gods, too much pressure, I used too much chakra and it literally blew up in my face.

Fuck it hurt.

Half pushing half crawling out of the dent I made in the wall I moved myself to the water. I had to roll myself over the tub's rim, but the minute the warm water touched my wound's helped tremendously.

I had to try that again later, after my back stopped hurting..so much.

A knock came from the door. "Aiya-chan I heard something break are you alright?" Hound, the Dog masked Anbu also assigned to watch us asked.

I coughed to clear my throat, my eyes stinging from the slight smoke."I'm fine just tripped, I'll be out soon."

"Ok, yell if you need any help, Be more careful next time neh."

"Hai." I told him as I heard his footsteps walking away.

After about half an hour just lying in the the tub, and knowing the kid's would be up soon, I finally motivated myself out of the waters. I wrapped my back as best I could with the first aid kit under the sink, along with my singed fingers and got dressed taking care to put on long sleeves.

I then moved the mirror in front of the small dent I made in the wall. I would fix that later..maybe. For now it wasn't to noticeable lets just hope the Anbu don't notice it.

It hurt but it wasn't bad, just sore, so I sucked it up and walked out of the bathroom. I could hear Naruto crying, He would wake Hana soon if I didn't get to him, so as quickly as I could I walked to the nursery.

"Naru dear, Sorry shh I'm here, did you have a bad dream again?" I asked him, as I picked him up wincing, yep I was going to feel these for the next week. Great.

He calmed down as soon as he saw my face, he squinted his eyes, sniffing and placed his hand on my cheek.

I softened my eyes, "I'm okay, sweetie, I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere." I told him. Naruto for some reason would have nightmare's if I was gone too long, he would wake up and cry causing Hana to wake up and start crying to.

I calmed him down after feeding Naruto a bottle. I brought him downstairs with me to consult the scroll I checked out at the library about beginner's chakra. I needed to see if I could fuse my chakra to activate the tag without such a big output.

I paused at the entrance to the living room, Wolf was standing there reading my scroll. Dammit. I should have put it up, what the hell am I to do now, he'll take it away and then how will I practice my chakra now.

"I see you've taken an interest in chakra." He said offhandedly not even lifting his head to look up at me.

"I thought it best to get a head start, before I entered the academy." My tiny voice replied. He nodded and hmmmed."I wasn't aware you could read yet."

"I can."

"Ah, well it seems that this scroll is outdated, would you care for a new one?" He asked like he was simply commenting on the weather.

(Lee's Pov.)

Lee was getting his ass handed to him. Utterly slammed into the dirt. He tried to block as Tetsu, his arch nemesis, socked him one right in the jaw. His eyes welled up with tears, as he grit his teeth.

This always happens. Why? Why couldn't he fight back, why was he so weak? Why didn't the caretakers do anything about it?! He was in the backyard of the orphanage he'd been taken to three months ago. Right in front of them, Suki-san was ten feet away from them and watching. But did she get up to stop them? No! She just watched gleefully as Tetsu landed blow after blow onto his cranium.

Why did they hate him so much! What did he do!

"Take this you bushy-brow freak!" Tetsu screamed kicking Lee in the gut making him scream.

Gods it hurt so much. Lee curled in on himself crying and trying to protect what little unbeaten part of his body was left.

"Don't ever come back here again! You hear me!" Tetsu yelled at him, giving him one more painful kick in the ribs before laughing and running off to play with his friends.

Soon enough after, His roommate had come over to him trying to help him up.

"Lee-san, are you ok?" She asked meekly her little four year old hands moving in circles on his back to soothe his pain.

"Fine." He coughed pushing himself to his feet swiping her hands away. A man never shows weakness in front of a woman. Men protected and comforted them, not the other way around.

"Your not fine, it looked like he really hurt you this time, Lee you gotta tell somebody maybe they can-" He cut her off.

"Can what! Help,no ones going to help us, You saw how the caretaker, Suki-san, just stood there and watched. We're orphans no one gives a damn about us." He sniffed trying to hold in his tears. "I'm so weak, I can't even fight back..hic.."

The girl's eyes shimmered,"Lee-san.."

Lee wiped his eyes with his tattered sleeves,"I'm going to t-town, you said Soigi needed new nappies right, I'll go get them for her." He replied.

The girl wiped her own eyes, as she watched her semi-friend walk away.

Lee stopped by their shared room to grab some money before making his way to the village.

Lee had been at that forsaken orphanage for almost four months. And he hated it, he hated it with a passion. It it wasn't for his roommate he would have run away from the prison. She's was the only one that had been concerned about him. The only one that had stayed up with him when he had nightmares of his parents deaths.

He was their when it happened. In the house with his mother, as his father was out fighting for their village. His mother had locked him and her down in the cellar, where it was coated by fuuinjutsu seals for protection.

But the monster was to close, so close he could feel the deep sinister killing intent. The intent was so sick, it made him vomit right before it came barreling down on them, destroying their house.

The seal's broke upon impact and at last second his mother pushed him out of the way as the floor above fell on her.

He stood there, in shock, watching the blood from her splattered cranium seep down to his feet. It was the first time that day that he screamed in utter terror.

By the time he was coherent through his inner turmoil he was in the hospital wing with a bunch of other children.

The nurses tried to be comforting but he ignored them, and everyone in the room, he just wanted the image of her dying out of his head, but the memories would replay for him every night.

He found out not soon after that his father had been killed in action as well. Lee was now an orphan.

If that pain wasn't enough he had been sent to Kohana's orphanage not soon after. The orphanage was horrible. The caretaker didn't care for any of the children, they only cared about intertainment. Lee overheard them talking of getting rid of some infants, two twin babies by the sound of it.

The caretaker said that they didn't have enough room in the orphanage for the babies, and we're going to send them to Kumo within the week.

Lee's heart constricted, and his breath going shallow. Wait! What! But...But..

But everyone knew what happened to orphan's in Kumo. They didn't live past a day.

How can anyone be that cruel.

Lee panicked, running to the woman, and begged the caretakers not to send them away, not to let anyone die anymore. They must have took pity on him, because the two infants were dropped in his arms.

"If you want the damn spawns so much you take care of them!" The woman screamed and left the room.

His roommate, a girl with short brown hair in pigtails, came up to him as he stared at the air in shock.

"Uno..daijōbu..?" She asked timidly. Lee's eyes shimmered. "Hic..No..I don't know.." He replied his arms tightening around the babe's as they cried. They had been awoke by the jolt of being thrust into Lee's arms.

"Oh..um, what's their names?" She asked placing a hand on one of the twins. "Ah, look they have them on their blankets, the blue one's, Miyuki, and the pink one's, So-ougi. Ayra, They must have mixed their names up, Miyuki is a girls name and Sougi's a boy." She continued to talk, obviously trying to get his mind off of what just happend.

He sniffed, taking a good look at the infants in his arms for the first time. They both where wrapped in blankets, one blue for the boy, and one pink for the girl. The boy had dark almost black hair, and brown eyes. While the girl had a lighter chestnut brown hair and black-gray eyes. They both where crying, but as soon as Lee rocked his body a little they calmed down.

"Ah, you got them to stop crying, most boys don't know how to do that." The girl said watching him cradle the children.

"My Kaa-san..used to do it for me..when I was sad.."He replied.

"Mine to.." The girl replied solemnly then stuck her hand out to Lee.

"I'm Tenten, what's your name?"

"Lee, Rock Lee." He replied shifting the children to shake her hand.

"Well, Lee lets be good Nee-san, and Nii-san to these two Neh?"

"Hai." He replied.

Ever Since that day, he and Tenten have been taking care of the twins. Lee did odd jobs around the village to pay for their food and cloths. The caretakers blatantly didn't even try to take care of them, as Lee and Tenten had to scavenge for themselves.

And if life wasn't even harder, Tetsu the orphanage bully and favorite of the caretakers, had set his sights on Lee. Being beaten up everyday sucked, Lee hated being so weak. He wished he was strong like his Tou-san had been but he wasn't.

Sucking it up, Lee continued his trudge to the village, if he was lucky he could get some rice cakes that Tenten liked as well, they went on sale close to this time.

Mustering up the energy, Lee half jogged-limped, to the stand. The crowd was big, but he was able to crawl under them and sag the rice cakes. Paying for them, Lee finished his shopping then headed back home.

His side was starting to bruise he could tell as his breathing became a little labored.

One of these day's, Lee wasn't going to be as weak as he is now, and he'd show Tetsu and those Caretaker. He'd show them.

Lee clenched his fist as he rounded the corner to the orphanage he bumped into something large and fell down.

"Itai..ow.."He cried holding his head.

"Well, Well, Well, Look who decided to come back boys." He heard that snarky voice he'd taken a beating from not to long ago.

Lee's eyes widened as he looked up to so Tetsu and his Goons.

"Ready for round two, bushy-brow freak." The large kid crackled as he made a fist and swung at Lee.

Shit.

A: I had a hard time with this chapter, mainly because I wanted to do sooo many scenes at once and get a lot of stuff done but thanks to my friend, lonelybelovid, I was able to work through my writer's block, and disorganized thoughts. He's really cool, and you guys should check out his x-men series Daughter of the Monster, you can really see how much better he gets at writing by the end of the first um..book/novel/story?..Idk, anyways thanks for those that followed and have already followed and been waiting patiently for my next chapter. I love all of you! Thanks again.

Q: Have you ever had that friend, the one you didn't know was your friend, and they show up when you need someone the most, and just bring the ice cream and the movies to make you feel better? If you do, then awesome if you don't you probably do, so whats keeping you from finding that friend?

Aiyaki