Disclaimer – I do not own the Naruto franchise or its original story and plot. But we'll see about that…goes off to do some telemarketing scheme for buying-out-Naruto-franchise money
Note – parings for this chapter – InoShino, Kurenai-Asuma
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I hate how I always forget what happens in my dream when I wake up. It would be something so pleasant, but as soon as I'm aware that I'm in my bed in the morning, there's a feeling of emptiness that something good has disappeared from me forever.
It's the opposite when you wake up and not forgetting your dream, but the latter parts of what you did that night, before you pass out drunk.
This is what it's like for me when the sunlight breaks through the silk curtains into the room, stabbing me in the eyes. When it's morning in Konoha during the spring, the rays are especially sharp, and I'm unfortunate enough to not have my glasses on when I open my eyes.
It stings, but I can't complain. I can still remember last night somewhat clearly. Ino and I share a couple of drinks, a few stories, and even a laugh or two. Of course it would mostly be Ino laughing, but thanks to the alcohol, I can only assume that my inhibitions failed to prevent me from laughing at her jokes too.
That's the last of what I can recollect of that night. Round after round of free drinks tends to do that. It takes a few seconds to realize I'm on the floor with a blanket around me, and the door leading into the hallway is closed. I never fall out of bed, and I always sleep with the door open, so this is something irregular in my usual routine for waking up. Nonetheless, I stand up in a half-awake trance, and proceed into the hallway, ignoring all the details of my surroundings. I just aim for the stairs, and pray that I don't clumsily fall down.
Thankfully, I manoeuvre myself down the steps without my face colliding with the floor. I turn to my right and walk towards the breakfast table like always, and give myself time to wake up naturally as I sit.
"Mornin'." A girly voice says, drowsily. It's probably my sister. Did I mention that I have a sister? She's eerily like me, except 2 years younger. She's also a gifted genin at the ninja academy, and she's extremely inconspicuous in front of her friends. I can't really see her face, but her expression and droopy walk is assurance enough. She could stand to put on some clothes though, since she has a habit of lounging around in suggestive nightwear in the morning. It's embarrassing for me because it tends to bring out her curves, but as long as none of her guy friends are around, I really don't care. It's a big brother thing, I guess.
"Morning." I grunt back as I struggle to gather all my senses. It's usually only until I'm fully awake before I notice obvious discrepancies in my surroundings. Today is especially true, since there's definitely something unusual about where I'm sitting. As she sits down across from me, I notice she's a bit closer to me than normal. I realize now that the table is a lot smaller than it's supposed to be. It sits two, not four. There are no pictures of the family hanging from the walls like always. The "flight" of stairs only had 2 steps in it. All the signs are showing that we're not at my house. Even weirder, my sister's hair is supposed to be short and black, not long and blonde. Is she even my sister?
I widely awaken to the sight of Ino sitting right across from me, wearing suggestive nightwear.
She's not fully awake either. Maybe I can steal a peek?
No. That's not the right thing. This is Ino, for crying out loud. She's the beautiful, smart, poetic, and genuinely nice girl who I've become so attracted to in the last few weeks. I've read some of Hinata's harem manga, and nothing good ever comes from the guy who accidentally caught staring at the girl's seductive form. Frankly, I don't feel like getting launched into the sky from a fearsome punch.
Ugh. She still hasn't noticed me in front of her. I don't look like her father at all. She's probably worse than me! I guess it isn't too bad of an idea to look at her. It's just a matter of not focusing on the suggestive parts. This story is not rated high enough to describe her "other" features anyways. Damn, she's pretty though. I wonder how often people tell her that she's that attractive.
"Dammit, Shino-kun!" a sultry, feminine voice from behind me pouts. "What do you see in her that you can't see in me?"
At least I wasn't caught looking by Ino. I inwardly concede and thank fate for not deciding otherwise.
"Kurenai-sensei," I ask, "this is your house?"
"Of course!" She ecstatically replies. "Don't you just LOVE my bachelorette pad?"
I nod. It is a nice house for its size. It's quite comfy for a single woman in her late twenties to early thirties. She's lived in it all her life, even after her parents moved away for retirement. I remember being here before with Hinata and Kiba a few years back; I remember it being a rickety bungalow located a bit far from the rest of the village, but has a nice view of it.
Speaking of bachelorette, the last time I saw her was yesterday evening on that double date with Ino and Asuma-sensei. I wonder how that worked out between them. I'm sure they had a good time, but it was a bit much for me. It was probably as bad for Ino as well, who's currently in a half-coma with her face finally falling down onto the table, creating a loud smack. It's amazing that she can still remain asleep afterwards.
"Shino-kun." Kurenai-sensei says, this time with a more serious tone. "You the both of you need to leave as soon as possible."
"Why?" I ask.
I hear a loud thump coming from one of the bedrooms in the hallway, followed by an angry voice, lashing out in pain and frustration. The thoughtless swearing makes me think that it's probably Asuma. I'm right, of course. He enters the room holding his shoulder gingerly. He must have fallen out of bed.
"Kurenai-sweetie! Your bed just collapsed on one side!" Asuma says groggily, lighting a cigarette.
Asuma slaps him. "I told you not to come out here! Do you really want Shino and Ino to find out about us?"
I can only come to the conclusion that in this two-bedroom house, they shared a room overnight, while…I shared a room with Ino? I guess that's why I was on the floor. Ino was sleeping on the bed, and I hadn't bothered looking there when I got up. I'm more shocked when I look at Asuma and Kurenai-sensei. They're both no more properly dressed than Ino.
Why am I the only one who bothers to wear clothes in this house? I remind myself to purge this morning from my memory, along with many other memories that coincidentally involve the two.
"I'd like to leave now." I say calmly, trying not to add to the unnecessary tension in the room.
"Okay." Kurenai-sensei says, taking a short drag of Asuma-sensei's cigarette. "You have to report to Tsunade's office about your mission. Ino as well, she wants to see you both."
The blonde's face is still planted onto the wood grain. It'd be cute if her face still had grain markings on it if she woke up just now. It'd be cuter if it stays on while she's speaking to Tsunade-sama later.
"I can't leave If Ino is still half-asleep." I point out. "She doesn't look she's going anywhere."
"That's fine," Asuma-sensei said. "Just carry her with you."
"That's so cute, Asuma-kun!" Kurenai-sensei squeals. "But she's still wearing my nightie! I'll have to dress her back into her usual clothing.
She skips over to Ino's side of the table and carries her off to her room.
"Don't miss us too much boys! O-ne-ga-ii 3"
Kurenai-sensei is now in her room, dressing up Ino-chan, and both of them are in revealing clothing. I'm in the main room with Asuma-sensei and sadly, I can't stop myself from thinking perverted thoughts. I blame Asuma; he probably tainted my virgin mind with some sort of hentai aura. With that gawky look on his face, I wouldn't be surprised if he was thinking the same thing, if not worse.
A few minutes later, Kurenai-sensei enters the hallway with Ino on her back. She looks at me, suggesting that I carry her load to the Hokage's office.
"How far is it to Tsunade-sama's building?" I ask.
"A few kilometres." She replies.
I inwardly sigh.
"Don't give me that look Shino-kun!" She says with a genuine smile. "Think of it as training!"
I can't rebut her logic. I really need to train hard for the Jonin exam, which is coming up way too soon for my liking. And besides, what's the harm in walking a few kilometres, giving the girl you like a piggyback ride? The more I think of it, the more I become excited at the prospect of spending a little more time with her when she wakes up.
I wouldn't trade that for anything in the world.
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Author's Notes
Yeah, sorry this chapter is a bit short, but I had the biggest headache on Friday after my midterm, and I have another one on Tuesday, so I gotta study. Have fun with this chapter, and don't forget to review, o-ne-ga-ii