64 Hours

It was one in the morning, and Gai was appalled at how few synonyms there were for "youthful." He had run around town, asking others what the best thesaurus was with much enthusiasm. Throughout this course of action, he had received many looks of confusion, more disturbed looks than he cared to count, and no solid opinions on the thesaurus issue. It truly was sad how un-literary the village of Konoha was. In the end, he had run to the bookstore and asked the shopkeeper his opinion. Since there were only three in stock, the shopkeeper's opinion hadn't actually mattered, and Gai had purchased all three. After eating a healthy dinner, he had high-tailed it back to his apartment, not seeing Rock Lee on the way. He had flopped on his bed and poured through the thesauruses, underlining promising synonyms. Then, of course, he had tried some on for size.

"Vernal rival!"

It had a nice ring to it.

"What a budding competition!"

Could be worse, he supposed. Either way, that would have to do. He would have to get a good night of sleep to make sure he was ready for meeting his star student. Oh, what was he going to do? Kakashi may have appeared to have backed him into a corner, but it was a well-known fact that the Blue Beast of Konoha never fought better than when the odds were stacked against him.

And if it wasn't well-known, it was about to be.

Two men stepped out of a flurry of leaves in the middle of a deserted road. The one with a spiky black ponytail turned toward the taller one and sighed. "Well, this is troublesome. Did your challenge really require you to kidnap me?"

"Not in so many words," Kakashi replied with a smile, "but basically, yes."

"So I was right about the challenge, then?"

"Yes, as you are about most things, my friend. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a dog to summon." He bit his thumb and bent down to slam his hand on the ground. Immediately, a small pug popped into existence.

"What's up, kid? You don't look like you're in danger."

"I'm in danger of losing a challenge if you don't help me."

The pug's eyes widened. "Oh kami, not Gai again."

"C'mon, you in?"

"Not unless you promise me there will be no hair bows, no curlers, and absolutely no spandex."

Shikamaru snorted.

Pakkun rounded on him. "Now, you listen here, pineapple head. If word of my wearing those things ever gets out into general knowledge, I will hunt you down, understand?"

"Understood. No need to get your tail in a knot." He continued to smirk.

"And just for the record, Kashi-kun, dressing me up as a snooty lap dog was not a suitable way to infiltrate an exclusive night club, and we are not doing that again."

"I won't make you do it again," Kakashi relented, "although, I must say, it was very effective. No one expects a dog to go around and unlock a back door."

"Don't even think about it. The number of ladies who tried to pick me up was appalling."

"I know, I know. I promise this one's not that involved. Are you in?"

Tilting his head to the side, Pakkun appeared to think about for a minute. Then he sighed. "Yeah, you know I am, kid."

"Perfect!" He leaned down to pick up the dog, then looked over at Shikamaru. "Thanks for the help, kid. See you around!" As he raised a finger in salute, the too-familiar cloud of leaves took them away.

Shikamaru stood for a minute, hands in pockets, just staring at where they had been. "Really? I have to walk all the way back now?" He shook his head, muttering, "Troublesome."

Kakashi's apartment appeared around him, and he set Pakkun on the floor to walk around. "Ok, here's the deal: I've got to be supervised 24 hours a day for three days, and I can't read Icha Icha for those three days."

"And you agreed to this?"

"Oh, don't worry, It's going to be worth it. I made Gai stop talking about youth, striking the 'good guy' pose, and talking to Rock Lee. He's getting his comeuppance."

"Man, just take away the green spandex, too, and I don't think Gai would continue to exist. Are you sure it wasn't a little bit harsh to keep him away from Rock Lee, though?"

"Eh, they'll figure it out. And he took away Icha Icha, so he had it coming. It's only three days, anyway. Hey, how long does the summon last for, again? I want to get some sleep in without being surrounded by people who want to take my mask off."

"'Bout five hours, usually. Why don't you just hang with us for the whole time? We'd keep you company."

"Yeah, it'd be an easy win that way, but I feel like Gai would make us do a rematch if he found out that you were the only people I saw, and there is no way I'm doing this for another 72 hours."

"Suit yourself. I'll wake you up before I go, then?"

"Yeah, sounds good." With that, he took off his mask, vest, and sandals, and crawled into bed. "See you in five hours."

"Sleep tight, kid."

Ah, the break of dawn. Gai could almost feel the vibrancy of the sunlight before he opened his eyes. In front of him, rays of sunlight found their way around his curtain, painting happy, bright patterns on his walls and covers. He sprang out of bed and pulled the curtain aside from his window. The streets of Konoha were empty, but birds were already fluttering about, singing quiet and cheerful songs. Yes, there truly was nothing quite like getting up with the sun. He would be starting the day's training with his… adolescent students soon. His heart sank slightly at the thought of facing Rock Lee. He wasn't sure how they would pull it off, but he was sure they would!

He pulled on a clean green spandex suit, slid on his leg warmers, and walked out his front door. As he took a deep breath of the sweet morning air, he felt his confidence rising. He knew what to do. He would just tell Neji about the challenge, and trust that he would tell Rock Lee. Perfect! See, the problem was much simpler than it originally appeared! He picked up his pace, a visible spring in his step.

"Yo!"

Gai turned around to see the copy ninja walking behind him, pug running beside. "Ah, I see you are enjoying this lively morning, as well, oh vernal rival!"

Kakashi fell into step beside him. "Vernal, huh? Someone found a thesaurus, I take it."

"Indeed I have! But I don't see anyone with you."

"That's why I've got Pakkun here." He leaned down and patted the dog on the head. The dog jerked his head to the side, indignant at being patted in public. He was a summon, for kami's sake!

Gai's eyes narrowed. "But, he's a dog, and not a person."

"I believe your exact words were that I had to be 'in the company of others.' You didn't really specify a species."

"Well, you know what I meant!"

"I did, which is why I only hung out with Pakkun during the night. After Team 10 tried to de-mask me, I figured it was ok to call in reinforcements."

Gai sighed. "Fair enough. But you had better be with other humans the rest of the time, Kakashi."

"Understood. Do you mind if I tag along for your training this morning?"

"Not at all! I look forward to showing you how my students who are in the springtimes of their lives have been improving."

"I look forward to it." Kakashi gave a one-eyed smile, and Gai returned his own smile whole-heartedly, making sure to keep his hands at his sides. Of course, Gai failed to see the look of mischief growing behind Kakashi's mask.

So, school's started again, so updates will probably be more spread out, just to give you a heads-up. Please let me know what you think, and have a spectacular day!

~JillianWatson1058