I'm too nice sometimes… I said I'd do the double upload, so I'm keeping my word and doing it. Please tell me next time though if something's a good idea or not k? I love getting reviews, it warms my heart and inspires me, it really does.

Enjoy!

Chapter 9

C Rank

The Hokage called Team Guy to his office, giving them their mission for the day.

"Do you believe you are ready for the mission given today?" the Hokage asked all four of them.

"Yes, we are ready." Guy answered.

"Not to be disrespectful Guy, but I wish to hear this from your students." He gestured to Neji, Asuka, and Lee.

"Of course." Neji replied.

"Yes sir!" Asuka stated, straightening her stance.

Lee saluted, "I am ready."

"Good, I will be giving you a C ranked mission today, an escort, I believe you are ready." He smiled at them all, giving all of them great confidence being trusted with a C rank mission, usually given to chunin or jonin.

Guy smiled, "Thank you sir! Who will we be escorting?"

"A merchant outside the gate, he will be escorted to an inn along the path, not too far from here, just a few miles." He stated.

"We won't fail you Hokage." Guy smiled before being dismissed with his team.

They got to the gate to see the merchant waiting for them. He didn't look old, probably around in his thirties, he had fair skin and brown eyes with straight shoulder length jet black hair. He was wearing a simple merchant uniform, a white robe with light brown sandals and carrying a fairly large pack with him. "So, you're the team who'll be escorting me?" he asked timidly.

"Yes we are, you seem scared?" Guy stated.

"Oh, I-Im not, it's just my nature." He showed a weak smile. "Shall we get going?"

Guy nodded, letting the merchant lead and his escort following behind. The escort wasn't hard; the walking was the only 'hard' part if you're feeling generous. No thieves of any sort to come by, it was boring. Guy noticed this, and thought of something to cheer everyone up.

"Hey, for a job well done, how about I take you guys to a bar that isn't too far from here?" Guy offered with a big grin.

Neji and Asuka shrugged their shoulders, not caring where Guy takes them. Lee happily nodded his head.

"Good! Follow me my youthful students!" Guy led the way.

ooOoO0OoOoo

Guy was nice and decided to treat them to lunch, buying anything that wasn't too expensive, everyone got water, except Guy, he got a drink Asuka has not heard of or seen yet, but she ignored it, figured it would be another 'adult' drink, and happily drank her water as she ate her sweet rice and dumplings.

Asuka had a quick glance at Lee carelessly drinking something that wasn't his, "Lee, that's not yours."

He gave her a questioning look, "What do you mean," his eyes got lazy and were droopy, his face smeared with blush, "It tastes just… f-fine." He fell off his chair and started walking around without a care in the world.

"Guy, what's wrong with Lee?" she asked her sensei.

Guy turned to see Lee breaking stuff by either accident or on purpose, he can't tell right now. "Lee! Stop that!" he got off of his chair and tried to restrain Lee, but he easily knocked his sensei off, throwing him onto a table.

Lee then kicked the chair out from under Asuka and accidentally caught her. He looked at her with lazy eyes, "Oh, h-hi Asuka!" he said drunkenly, "How are you? Y-you know what, I wanna hug." He gave her a bear hug, trapping her arms at her said as he squeezed her waist, lifting her off the ground.

I should be enjoying this but it hurts! She choked on her breath, trying to breath, hearing popping and cracking on her arms and ribs. Her mouth was gapping, trying to scream in pain, but her lungs wouldn't let her remove anymore air. Her face was turning a pale white. I can't breath because of my best friend?! He's crushing everything in my body right now. "N-Neji… h-help." she squeaked out in pain. He was squeezing tighter and tighter by the second.

With the help of Guy and Neji, they pried his arms off of her. Relieved, filling her burning lungs with cool air, she stood back up to feel that her arms are fractured, not broken. Her vision was a bit blurry though due to the lack of oxygen and blood to her head. She was trying to regain her senses, all the voices around her were just echoes. She blinked a few times to see that Lee was coming at her again, punching her in the chest, sending her flying out of the bar, through several trees, and finally a boulder breaking her landing.

Her body was face down on the ground, trying to get up, but her chest was hurting so bad, her body wouldn't allow her to get up. She only saw colors now, moving, and blurry colors. A giant grey blob was next to her, barking and whimpering. Hatsuharu. He was trying to help her up, but her arms still refused to work with her.

A green blob picked her up, not over its shoulders, but cradled her like a baby, trying not to worsen her injury. She couldn't understand a word they were saying, but a white blob was carrying another green blob. Neji must be carrying Lee, and Guy must be carrying me. Now that she was safe, she let herself drift off to sleep.

ooOoO0OoOoo

After half way home, Lee sobered up and Neji let go of him. Lee stretched, looked at his surroundings to find Asuka in his sensei's arms out cold. "What's wrong with Asuka?" Hatsuharu glared at him, growling menacingly, charging after him only to be caught on the scruff of the neck by Neji. "What's wrong Hatsuharu!?" Lee shocked to see him lounge after him like that.

"You don't remember anything?" Neji said as he struggled to keep Hatsuharu down.

"No, what happened?" Lee asked frantically.

Guy sighed, "Lee, you drank some of my sake and started breaking everything in sight. You hugged Asuka so hard her back, arms, and ribs are injured. While she was trying to recover from that, you punched her in the chest, sending her out of the bar and into a boulder, crushing her breast bone." Guy's eyes were filled with sorrow, seeing one of his youthful students in his arms like this, because of his most youthful student.

Lee's eyes were wide with shock, his mouth gaping trying to find the words to say what have I done? He looked at the angry, loyal gray wolf trying to get loose of Neji's grip to chew his face off. "Hatsuharu," he knelt down, looking straight at the ground, "I am sorry I hurt your companion, Asuka, when she wakes, I vow not to do anything as foolish to her ever again. I am forever apologetic to you, and Asuka, will you ever find it in your heart to forgive me when she wakes and recovers?" he kept his head down, hearing Hatsuharu not fighting against Neji's grip anymore.

He was waiting for it, for Hatsuharu to bite his head off and use it as a chew toy for as long as he liked. He felt the breathing of Hatsuharu on his head, smelling his, strangely clean, warm dog breath. He tensed his shoulders, just waiting for it, cringing his teeth as he gripped his knees.

Hatsuharu licked Lee's face, getting him to look up at the dog as he nuzzled his nose in Lee's arms. He hugged him, about to be in tears, never thinking Hatsuharu would do this after accidentally hurting his companion like that.

"You forgive me then?" Lee asked impishly. Hatsuharu shook his head and grinned, he could never hate Asuka's best friend.

"Lee, we really need to go." Guy stated, "Asuka's in pretty bad condition.

Lee saluted, "Yes sensei!" they started their walk back to the leaf village again. Lee finally had time to think to himself. He seemed content with everything, but really, he was beating himself up on the inside, blaming himself for every injury he caused to his beloved friend, Asuka.

How could I have done this to her? Why her of all people!? Why couldn't it have been someone else, anyone else besides her who got hurt by my reckless strength! I will make this up to her somehow, but how?... I know! I'll stay by her side till she's able to do things on her own again, that's how I'll do it! If she needs ANYTHING I will not hesitate to do. He sighed, having a plan to himself to repay his dept back to her.

Looking at her again, he realized how weak she looked, her dark purple hair was a tangled mess as it hung out of his sensei's arms. No sign of movement in her head, arms, or legs, just slight breathing. Her clothes slightly ripped here and there. If it wasn't for her chest slightly moving with each little breath she took, he would have thought they were carrying a dead person back for a burial.

ooOoO0OoOoo

The sun shied out of its hiding place, letting its rays of sunlight and warmth meet with the cold ground of Konoha; shining though Asuka's room window and over her blanket covered body. Her eyes batted awake, everything was so bright and yet dark at first, trying to get her eyes to adjust; she rubbed them and yawned. As she tried stretching, she realized her arms were in braces; meaning her arms are nearly healed, but not close enough for her. She tried to sit up but ended up crying out in pain as she couldn't even support her own weight.

A friendly, familiar wet warmth met her face. "Hey Hatsuharu," she petted her companion's head as he continued to lick her face, "you're a sight for sore eyes boy." She giggled but cringed, it hurt to breath, and it even hurts to laugh now.

She sighed, her companion whimpered, only imagining how much pain she must be in. he laid his head down over her stomach, not putting all of his weight on her. She smiled and petted him more, watching his tail wag.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

A nurse gently opened the door, a smile spread across her face to see her patient finally awake. "Good morning!" she chirped. "The doctors didn't think you'd be awake by now." Her small framed body glided across the floor and into a chair next to Asuka, pulling out a clipboard as her flimsy light brown, jaw length hair framed her heart shaped face. She looked back at Asuka with her big hazel eyes. "I'll be answering some questions for you, but first I'll answer the basics." She put on her reading glasses and cleared her throat. "You've been here for 15 days now, knocked out cold by your partner, Rock Lee. He gave you a concussion and unfortunately you slipped into a coma. Your breast bone was shattered, arms fractured, five ribs broken, four cracked, and your spine cracked in several vertebrae, luckily though, your not paralyzed. Your injuries will heal in time and we have already done the surgery necessary on your heart and lungs for you to live. What happened was that bone fragments from your breast bone got into your heart and lungs, luckily again they weren't lodged in, just stuck like a sticker. You should heal completely in six to eight weeks, you'll be out of here in a week, and we expect you to do no training what so ever until you heal. Understood?" she looked back at her with a big grin on her face. Like this is the first time she's done this or she just LOVES her job.

Asuka swallowed the lump in her throat. "Thank you, where is my team now?"

"Rock Lee should be here any minute, he's visited you everyday, checking on you, making sure you didn't do worse after the operation." She gleefully replied

"If you don't mind nurse, I want some time to comprehend this before Lee shows up." She slightly grinned with hurt eyes.

The nurse blinked a few times before nodding and leaving the room, leaving the door cracked open.

She sighed and looked over to Hatsuharu. "When will this end?"

He shyly smiled and wagged his tail.

"You don't know either." She stared up at the ceiling. "Great."

The door creaked open; a bandaged hand led the way and opened the door wider. Lee was instantly filled with joy, jittering by just the sight of his friend finally awake after weeks of visiting. He had his arms wide about to give her a warm hug but hesitated. Sadness filled his eyes as he lowered his head and looked away. "I am sorry Asuka," he choked out, "I am sorry for hurting you like this, I am sorry that I even bruised a bone in your body, I am sorry I made scars on your head, will you ever forgive me?" he put his hands behind his back, still looking away, not wanting to see the damages he'd done to her.

Her eyes were wide at first, but softened after seeing Lee like this. "If you hug me gently, I will."

He wiped away his tears as he raised his head and smiled. He gently dug his arms under her shoulders, raising her slightly as he laid his chin on her shoulder. She wrapped her braced arms below his shoulder blades as he gently squeezed her. Laying her back down slowly, he kissed her forehead and blushed lightly.

She giggled then cringed as she laid her arm over her chest, trying to bare the pain.

"You ok?" he asked.

She gave him a warm smile, "Lee, that hug hurt, but I enjoyed every second of it. And that's the first time you kissed me anywhere on the face, I'm astonished."

His eyes glistened with happiness, "If you need anything Asuka, just say the word and I'll do it." he saluted to her, straightening his back and puffing out his chest.

A memory flashed through her, her eyes shocked, wide open in this. "What about the chunin exams?! Are you guys going to enter or has it already happened?"

"Oh… about that," he scratched the back of his head and looked away, "Guy said 'if one of us can't enter, then none of us will' don't worry though," his smile came back as he lifted his head again, "we'll enter next year, we'll be stronger by then, guaranteeing us being chunins next year." He gave her the 'good guy' pose.

"Lee, I'll never understand your confidence, but I always get filled with joy when you're like this. So, alright, we'll be chunins next year." She smiled at him.

Two more people walked in, "Geez, finally you're awake!" Naruto blurted out.

"I know right?" Kiba agreed, "It seems like it's been forever since we've seen her awake." Akamaru barked happily and hopped off his head, landing on Asuka's chest.

"GET AKAMARU OFF OF ME!" Asuka cried out in pain.

Kiba spazed out and quickly scooped Akamaru off of her, shoving him in his gray jacket. Akamaru's head just popped out and barked. "I am so sorry Asuka." He raised his hands in defense and started to back away as Hatsuharu growled and advanced on him.

"Hatsuharu!" Asuka said, Hatsuharu sat down and glared at him, "I'm sure Akamaru didn't mean it okay?" she petted her companion, easing his tension.

Alright, I have a proposal, for my followers and reviewers, if this story reaches up to 15 reviews, then I will upload the next chapter the next day. Unless it's on a Wednesday, that's church night, meaning less likely of me actually uploading something that night. Other than that, it should be good.

Remember, if this story gets 15 reviews or more, I will upload the next chapter, the next day.

Hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

NOW I'll maybe see you next week!

February 4 (I have the title of the next chapter, but if I tell you it would probably spoil it… so yah)