Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto.
Warning: There will be boars on sunny Tuesdays
Thank you for the reviews Paperboy Jacky, the-first-beast, Guest (1) and Guest (2)!
To address some of you:
Paperboy Jacky: I don't know what the Tenseigan is but you should give a crack at writing it. I would like to read it!
Guest (1): I wish I should see the battles in real life too, but alas, they can only be in our minds. It would be cool though!
Special thanks to Natsuki Scarlet, PurpleRawan, Angel Hatake, xxOchibixx, and ShugoYuuki123. You guys always express your thoughts and it's really nice to see what goes on in others' minds!
Happy reading!
Thirty-nine.
Aftermath.
Rather than my eyes flickering open to see the drowning arena, I was welcomed to stale, white walls and IV drip. That's right, I was in the infirmary.
I knew the battle was over, I lost. I would be lying if I said it didn't sting; no longer eligible to compete in the Chunin exams. Yes, Mae is strong and incredibly gifted, but it was my internal warfare, that was my downfall. As I laid in the hospital bed, what if factors haunted me. What if I didn't have crimpling pain— boiling inside me? Could I have won? But in the end, I knew dwelling wouldn't solve anything. And besides, Mae won, fair and square.
There wasn't much left to say after my water dragon met its demise and Mae's charged straight for me because I can't remember. It had been weeks, three to be exact, since I woke up in the infirmary and been here ever since. No serious injuries; just patching cuts and bruises and supplying me with fluids and food.
I have had a few friendly faces to keep time from stopping, preventing me from ripping out these tubes and hopping out of the closest window. Naruto, for one, was my number one visitor. He was also my number one bragger. Apparently, after mine and Mae's fight, it was Naruto versus Kiba. He told and retold the story, each time getting more dramatic and extreme.
"And my scent ended him! Kiba never saw it coming!" Naruto always ended the story.
When Naruto said 'scent' he meant:
"You farted in his face?" I asked, the first time he told the story, dumbfounded.
Naruto beamed triumphantly. "It was tactile. Being a Dog-Boy meant his sense of smell was a thousand times stronger!"
"You mean tactical?" I gave a brow.
"Same difference," he waved off.
"So you farted and he fainted from the smell?" I confirmed.
"Yup, pretty sweet right?"
Right, sweet.
Sakura was my number two. Day in and day out she would visit me, sneak me in non-hospital cardboard food, and checked my monitor for any blips. I joked that she would be a great nurse, she didn't find it as amusing. I guess the thought of wearing a nurse outfit was off-putting.
She also filled me in on news from the outside world. More often than not, it was about Sasuke. How she was worried for him. He had been emitted from the infirmary already, or rather, he excused himself. According to Sakura, he disappeared one day and hasn't showed up since, driving the nurses bonkers.
Sasuke had only visited me once. It was one of the first days I was here. I woke up with him hovering over the end of my bed. Bandages still on his face and neck. He was quiet, no news there. But he was there for a reason:
"Your Sharingan, did you use it?" he asked.
I didn't want to lie to him. "Yes."
He breathed in sharply. "So it wasn't a fluke. You're an Uchiha."
Despite how serious he was, I couldn't help but laugh. "I'm not an Uchiha."
He tried to convince me, but it was pointless. I knew I wasn't. Well, I didn't know for sure, but I sure as hell didn't feel like one. When I asked him how he was doing, he ignored me and took off. I haven't seen him since.
Others have stopped by. Hinata stopped by to thank me for pushing her to fight her cousin. I told her I was just glad she was alright. Shikamaru and Choji had visited me, too.
Who hadn't was Mae and Kiba, not once. I understood, Mae and I were still on shaky terms and Kiba was beating himself over the three beautiful scars I have on my cheek because of him. I joked with Naruto that we were twins, granted mine were shorter, just on the outer half of my cheek. Naruto grinned at the thought.
I wasn't mad at Kiba and wished I could leave to tell him. I knew he didn't mean to hurt me.
There was one other person; however, who hadn't visit me. Kakashi, my guardian angel; the one who worried about every step I took. And for the life of me, I can't figure out why or where he has been. Sakura doesn't know either. Both her sensei and teammate have vanished. I could tell how abandoned she felt and figured that was why she visited me so often.
Sakura also informed me who was going forward to the final rounds besides Sasuke, Naruto, Neji, Gaara, and Mae. Shikamaru—no surprises there—Temari, Kankuro and Shino. She explained the next step, the final rounds of the Chunin. After the preliminaries, each winner drew a slip of paper that held a number and read it aloud. The numbers determined who each contestant would be up against.
Naruto was against Neji, which I knew already. It was another thing Naruto never shutted up about. Sasuke was against Gaara. Shivers ran down my spine when she told me that. We both have seen how Gaara fought.
Mae was against Kankuro. I had no idea how he fought, but if he was anything like his younger brother, he's strong.
In one month, currently days away, they were to perfect old and develop new techniques for the final rumble. According to Sakura, you don't have to win the battle to become Chunin. It was judged on how that contestant possessed and executed their techniques. All nine could become Chunin, or none can.
Sakura have explained and updated everything to me, but never about what happened after the world went dark for me. No one did. Not even Naruto, who I asked many times. They either ignored me or segued to another topic of conversation.
I have been well enough to leave for days now. Holding me back was the thing that always haunted me, my past. Usually the doctors would only take a few hours to conduct the tests, but this time, for some reason, they have held me captive longer.
A gentile knock tapped my door and I told them to come it. It was my nurse; the same nurse I've had since day one.
"Hey, Sweetheart," she said in her notorious southern twang. "How you feeling today?"
"Like I'm ready to go home, Sheva." We have seen each other so much, we address each other by our first name. "How's the family?"
"Oh, you know Ripley, always creating some kind of havoc," she laughed, but quickly her grin turned into a frown of confusion. Her being anything besides happy was unusual. She smiled when her purse was stolen once, said that thing was old and bunkered anyway— whatever that meant.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
She quickly peered over her shoulders and quietly shut the door. She sat at the edge of my bed. "I probably shouldn't be saying this," she whispered. "But, they have been holding you here like a sweating boar on a sunny Tuesday because they found something unusual."
My brow peaked with curiosity and it wasn't because of the incomprehensible boar metaphor. "What do you mean?"
"Shh," she shushed. "One of the tests came back irregular. Apparently, Doctor Carter told Nurse Hope who told Nurse Bishop who told me that your net chakra reservoir has increased."
Nurse Sheva was always a gossiper. She was always rambling about her church group and who did what to who. When she told gossip though, she was ecstatic, always excited to tell me like it was a secret for the two of us. This time, she was as serious as I have ever seen her.
"That's not normal?" I asked.
"No, Sweetheart. That's very not normal. Net chakra can increase slightly as you tap into your spirit and train, but your network has nearly doubled."
I gasped. It felt like I had a frog in my throat. I could barely croak out the words, "Why wouldn't they tell me?"
Nurse Sheva could see the concern I had and patted my hand. "It's alright, Sweetheart. It is probably just a fluke. They are just taking precautions."
Even though kind, it didn't help my uneasiness. What could this mean? What could any of this mean?"
"On the bright side," she said, chipper. "They are releasing you today! And someone wanted to walk you out."
"Really? Who?"
Before she could reply, the door opened. It was sensei.
"Oh there you are, Gachero-Sensei," Nurse Sheva said, flustered. "I was just telling Quorra you would be escorting her out today."
I was surprised to see it was Gachero-Sensei, even though shouldn't have been. He visited every few days to see how I was holding up. He gave us his signature pearlescent smile. I knew why Nurse Sheva was flustered. Gachero-Sensei was a good looking guy. He had dark blue eyes you could trust. Nurse Sheva also had a crush on him, even if she could have been his mother. It was nothing serious, mainly fun as she tended to whistle at him from afar, an ongoing joke. I think she does it to make me smile. It works.
Nurse Sheva helped detached all the machinery and I was good to go.
ξ
"So, Quorra," Gachero-Sensei said as he was signing me out at the front desk. "How do you feel about a Ramen celebration?"
I smiled at my sensei, playing with the sleeve of my clothes, happy I was out of those hospital gowns. "Actually, Sensei. I'm not ready to leave. There's someone I want to visit first."
Gachero-Sensei rose his perfectly shaped brows. "Who?" he asked, before it hit him. I nodded, affirmatively.
Lee.
ξ
The nurse at the front desk informed us Rock Lee was in the East wing. Gachero-Sensei and I approached the room to see it wide open. Inside, the bed was empty.
"Where'd he go?" I asked.
"There." Gachero-Sensei pointed to the commotion outside his window. Sakura, Ino and a nurse were standing around Lee who was on the ground.
"Lee!" I gasped and we ran outside.
In the courtyard, I realized Lee wasn't hurt as I initially feared. He was doing push-ups.
"200 push-ups, that was the deal," Lee told himself. One of his arms was in a sling. "If you cannot finish them, then it's 100 leg squats so come on. 196…"
"Lee, you shouldn't be out of bed!" his nurse gasped.
"197…" He ignored her as sweat dripped from his face, creating a puddle below him.
"Lee, please," the nurse bent down to help her patient.
"No!" Lee yelled. "Please, let me…finish my training." His elbows shook as he pushed himself up.
"198…"
Sakura and Ino looked at Lee grimly. I understood their sorrow. Like the medic said during the preliminaries, Lee's shinobi days were over. His injures were too great. It broke my heart, too.
"199…" Lee panted. I couldn't believe he was able to withstand this much. "Don't count me out. I am not through yet."
His only free arm bent to perform another push-up. It bellowed like a overloaded wagon. "One more, just one more," he spoke through gritted teeth.
"Lee…" My heart went out for him, deeply desiring to help him back into his room so he could rest. But I knew what staying here can do to a person. A prisoner of dreams. Me.
He screamed in pain and collapsed to the ground. The others cried out for him.
"Watch him," the nurse rolled him over, panicked. "I'll get a stretcher." We complied.
Lee was passed out cold. His mouth hung open and hair clung to his sweat. It was crushing to witness. We all knew how hard he worked to be where he was today. It wasn't fair.
In her hands, Sakura held a single flower, a daffodil. I recognized the flower because she gave me one as well. It sat at my end table and brightened my day. Whenever it wilted, she would supply a new one.
"Why, why Ino. What makes boys like that? They are always pushing it too far," Sakura asked, sadly kneeling besides Lee.
Ino's mouth twisted. "Why ask me? I'm not a boy," she spoke with venom, but she felt it, too. Helplessness.
I gently plucked the flower from Sakura's hand. "Because the boys we care about all have the same goal. They want to be the strongest," I said, somber.
I tucked the flower into Lee's unconscious hand and rested them both on his chest. "And Lee is no exception. The daffodil symbolizes new beginnings. He will have his new beginning and will be a great shinobi again one day. It's up to us to help him get there."
The three nodded. It wasn't much, knowing what the doctors tell us, but it brought our broken spirits up.
"Of course he will," Gachero-Sensei confirmed with his smile. His tanned, muscular arms picked up the unconscious boy and together we walked towards his room.
We all deserved a rebirth.
ξ
Gachero-Sensei and I said our goodbyes to Ino and Sakura, who were happy someone was able to leave the hospital without sneaking out like Sasuke did. It meant things could maybe look up from here.
We ventured towards the market. Entering the marketplace felt like I never left. It was bustling with loud barters and talkative villagers, even this early in the day.
"So, Quorra," Gachero-Sensei began. "Anything new pop-up during the hospital tests?"
I wasn't ready to share my newest information with him; needed time to process it.
"No? Why you ask?" I gave him a critical look.
Gachero-Sensei thought nothing of it. "I was just curious. They probe and poke you so often. I was hoping maybe they would find something so they can stop."
My intense look eased. Gachero-Sensei was an important figure in my life. Obviously he cared about my well-being.
"Hopefully soon," I lied.
Gachero-Sensei nodded, staring off at the infamous elderly couple bickering. The elderly woman was scolding her husband on how they couldn't buy a pet because she took care of him – like a pet— already. I couldn't help but smile.
"What about your past then? Anything jogging in that noggin?" He tapped his temple.
"Any form of memory I have is a dream so I can never tell if it just that. A dream." I sighed.
"I see," Gachero-Sensei said. "What are in your dreams?"
I wanted to question his integrity, but thought against it and told him. The visions of imprisonment, green eyes and red themed items. I left out my hypothesis that Gaara was the one in my dream. That was something I needed to find out on my own.
Gachero-Sensei absorbed the information like a sponge, interested in my visions.
"I wished I could help. I feel useless," Gachero-Sensei sighed.
"It's not your fault, Sensei. Things will look up," I smiled, sadly.
Gachero-Sensei nodded, but it still bothered him. He was responsible for Team Thirteen. "I know… I just wished I could help you."
He gave me a contemplating look. "Maybe there is something I could do…"
"What do you mean?" I rose a brow.
"There's an ANBU technique we were trained to use to extract information out of our enemies. I could technically try it on you, but…"
"But, what?" I asked, too curious than I wanted to admit.
"But…" his mouth twisted. "The method is ethnically debated. It's very risky, both in results and your health."
In my health? I couldn't imagine what he was referring too. ANBU kept their identities and actions hush hush. You only knew someone was ANBU when they retired from the organization. Enrollees wore animal-featured masks to keep their identity a secret.
He took my wordless reply to heart. "You don't have to, of course! I wouldn't blame you in the least, but understand that I can't go into details unless you were to go through with it. It is completely your decision."
I was against the thought of doing something I had no prior knowledge of. He requested to mentor Team Thirteen to give us a chance and with Leda gone and Mae and I in limbo, there wasn't much left to mentor. We're all broken.
"I'll think about it, thank you." He felt guilty, I knew that.
Gachero-Sensei sensed how flustered he became and calmed. "Right, good." He avoided further discussion of the topic. "So what are your plans on your first day of freedom?"
I knew what I wanted to do. Well, felt I had to do.
"Going to pay a visit to Hokage-sama," I replied.
Gachero-Sensei was taken aback. "The Hokage? Were you requested?"
I shook my head. "No, but I want to talk to him about something."
Gachero-Sensei looked like he wanted to push on the issue, but thought against it. "Alright," he smiled. "Need an escort?"
I declined his offer. "I need to do this on my own. Thanks for accompanying me out of the hospital."
He looked unsure, but in the end said, "It was my pleasure," with his warmest smile yet.
ξ
Saying goodbye to Sensei, I went to visit the Hokage. Even though Nurse Sheva told me in secret, I was going to tell the Hokage about the newest findings with my net chakra. As I wished to keep the secret from others, I don't want to keep it from him. I was a firm believer of the truth eventually coming out of the wood grains. It would look bad if the doctors got to him before I could.
I took a deep breath to calm my bubbling nerves.
"Hokage-sama?" I called, knocking on the door. The old door creaked open.
I stuck my head in. No one was there. Opening the door fully, I waltzed inside.
That's funny. I never seen the Hokage not here, I thought.
His office was clean as usual, except for the endless piles of papers on his desk. I couldn't fathom why he didn't have an assistant.
I stealthily hovered over the desk, casually glancing at the mountains. Words like taxes and policies stood out on the documents. I knew I shouldn't have been snooping and went to turn away when something rather odd, caught my attention.
In the center of the desk was a manila folder with a red TOP SECRET stamp.
My stomach flipped. My immediate thoughts clashed to thinking the file was about me, explaining my recent results and who knows what else. Has he read it yet? Should I read it? Could I?
"How are you child?" called a voice behind me.
Surprised, I jolted alert and turned. The Third stood behind me with a cup of steaming tea in his hand. He greeted me with a friendly smile, making my face turn shades of deeper red, embarrassed I was caught snooping.
"Ah, I was— I wasn't snooping, ah!" I jumbled, making the situation worse.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama," hanging my head in defeat.
He nodded with acknowledgement and took a seat. His tea rested on the desk as swirls of steam escaped the smooth brown surface.
"Is there something you need child?" The Hokage asked.
Mesmerized, I snapped out of my trance. "Huh, yeah…"
I tried to spew the words, but they stuck in my throat. "Nurse Sheva told me that my net chakra increased, but she wasn't supposed to tell me because the other doctors didn't want me to know." I spat out. Then, I quickly realized that outing Nurse Sheva could get her into trouble. "But don't blame Nurse Sheva! She was just trying to help!"
The Third scratched his goatee like he normally does whenever he was in thought. "It increased did it? Well, that's normal since you have been training so much, especially with someone as young as you."
I hung head low, avoiding his eyes. "But, it has nearly doubled."
I could hear his breath stop short, deepening my shame. Even the Hokage knew no amount of training could result in that, in less than a year's time.
"I wanted to tell you before someone else did," I mumbled, praying he wouldn't kick me out for this.
He placed his wrinkly hand on the red lettered folder I was eyed before and slid it behind a stack of papers, out of sight.
The Hokage cleared his throat. "Right, thank you for telling me, Quorra. I'm sure the doctors will find an explanation for this."
"You're not upset?" I asked, surprised.
"Upset? Of course not child. You can't help not knowing your past."
I sighed with relief. A weight was lifted off my shoulders. Just because I was a case number, he doesn't treat me less.
The Hokage studied my face. "But that's not the only thing that's bothering you," he said, accusatively.
It wasn't until he mentioned it did I realize he was right. Something else was bothering me, engraved deep into my being, fearing the foundation was my life would be built on this accusation. Even now, I thought this was the case as the Hokage wasn't negatively affected by my bizarre chakra network.
"Lord Hokage, do people pity me?" He was one of the many people who have helped me stay in the village despite all odds and allowed me to attempt becoming Chunin.
He rose a bushy brow, scrutinizing me. "Who told you that?"
My eyes quickly left his as I stared awkwardly away, wishing I didn't bring it up.
He wasn't going to let this go. "Was it Mae?" he asked, as if reading my mind.
He wasn't dumb. He and all the other jonin and genin saw my battle with Mae. Excluding the beginning, we fought like enemies. There was a deep, underline reason for the way we treated each other. It didn't take someone as wise and knowledgeable as the Hokage to figure that out.
My wordless reply answered the Hokage's question.
"I see," he stroked his goatee again. "That's hurtful to say to someone, especially if it's your own teammate."
You can say that again, I thought.
"The girl has been through a lot," the Hokage informed. "And if there's one thing that this old man has learned through years of experience, it's that things aren't always as they seem. Unless you know her side, you don't know the whole story."
I never thought of it like that. I assumed Mae and I were very open with each other; telling each other our thoughts and feelings. We were around each other so much, displaying and discovering one another. What was the Hokage implying? I thought. Was there something Mae never told me?
"But just to clarify, child," he interrupted my train of thought. "I would have never allowed you to stay in the village out of pity."
I couldn't help my mouth from hanging open. "Then, why would you let me stay?"
The Third studied me closely, examining my awestruck persona. It made me feel so small against such a big, momentous figure like him.
"Before I officially met you, the girl Kakashi spoke so highly of, I didn't know what to expect. My first reaction, as Hokage, was to send you to isolation— study you until I knew you weren't a threat." The Hokage paused, as if trying to find the right string of words to continue with.
"But when you walked into this office for the first time, there was something in your eyes that I saw in myself when I was younger."
With the millions of questions to the endless possibilities, "What did you see?"
The Hokage's studying expression turned happy, as if finally knowing what words to say.
"The need to change the world."
"Hokage-sama," the words caught in my throat. His eyes twinkled with satisfaction.
"Grandfather!" boomed a voice at the door, disturbing the moment.
"What is it, Konohamaru?" The Third sighed.
The energetic boy ran to his grandfather. "Naruto won't play ninja with me," Konohamaru whined. "Can't you order him to play with me? You're the leader!"
"You know I can't, grandson," the Third spoke like that wasn't the first time this was requested.
"Oh, come on!" Konohamaru said, exacerbated.
"He's busy training for the finals, Konohamaru," I added.
"Yeah, yeah," the boy said, condescendingly. "All he does is brag about the Chunin exams and his new instructor."
I've heard Naruto mention this once— well, several times before. He called his trainer Pervy Sage, but whenever I would give him a questioning look, he would rush to explain that despite the nickname, the guy was the real deal.
"Wait a minute," Konohamaru realized. "Quorra, why are you here? Is grandfather bothering you again?"
Surprised at the accusation, I laughed it off. "No, no, huh- Lord Hokage was just—"
"I was just telling Quorra a good way to release tension was to do something creative like drawing or writing. It's a good way of clearing unsure thoughts," the Hokage brushed over. He gave me a wink.
"Hmm," Konohamaru pondered this, rubbing his chin like his grandfather does. "Yeah, makes sense to me," he concluded.
"Naruto is at the hot springs. Why don't you pay a visit, Quorra?" The Hokage requested, quickly switching the subject.
I got the hint. "Sure, that sounds like a good idea." I bowed to the Third before heading out of the office.
"Hey! Me, too. I'm coming too!" Konohamaru yelled.
"Not so fast. Iruka-Sensei tells me you haven't been doing your homework, so we're going to work on it together." The Hokage can't order Naruto to play, but as a grandfather, he can tell his grandson to do work.
"Oh, man!" Konohamaru cried.
ξ
As Hokage-sama promised, Naruto was at the hot springs. Even though the Hokage sent me here, I was going to find him anyway. It was exciting to have someone from Team Asanoha in the finals and I wanted to give the crazy blonde my support.
Naruto was standing on the water, or at least trying to. He wobbled like he was balancing on a rolling barrel.
"Hey, Naruto!" I greeted with a smile.
"Wha-?!" Naruto lost his concentration and fell into the springs with a splash.
I tried not to laugh. "Sorry!" I apologized.
"Quorra! You're out of the hospital!" Naruto cheered, climbing out of the water. He wrung his black T-shirt.
"Yeah, got discharged this morning," I explained. "I wanted to check up on you and your big training. Konohamaru told me how great your new teacher is."
Naruto rolled his eyes by the sound of Konohamaru's name. "That pest won't butt out! He doesn't understand how important I now am!" Naruto bragged. This time it was me who rolled their eyes.
"So where's this Big Shot instructor then?"
Naruto cocked his head in wonder. "Yeah, where is that Pervy Sage? HEY, PERVY SAGE, WHERE ARE YOU?!" he screamed into cuffed hands, paying no mind he was in a public place.
It was then we heard the sound of screaming girls and someone jumping out of a bush.
"Naruto! You're blowing my cover, don't you know I'm trying to research here!" The man spoke.
I realized it before he did. When his eyes connected with mine, they were saucers. His face became pale and turned to stone, freezing his red tattooed lines in place. His long, grey hair end stood on end.
I couldn't miss that face anywhere, no matter how hard I tried to block the misfortunate incident at the hot springs.
"FUCK, IT'S YOU!" we screamed and pointed simultaneously.
A change in pace. It's been a while since we had a non-fighting battle.
Theory storming time! Why do you think Quorra has such a sudden change in net chakra? Is the TOP SECRET folder about her?
Also, what do you think the method Gachero-Sensei is referring to? Will Quorra go through with it?
What was your favorite part of the chapter?!
Until next time!
xoxo
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