Chapter 4

I was nearing my breaking point when Kakashi finally decided to show with Ibiki. I had waited three hours, for crying out loud! My time wasn't that wasted, however. Tsunade told me about Konoha and it's inhabitants to pass the time. Or to avoid her 'work.'

Shinobi came and went occasionally. I was introduced to some; the ones that she was closer to, I assumed. One of them, Gekko Hayate, had a mysterious illness that plagued his lungs. Apparently, no one knew how to cure it or knew what it was. I, however, had definitely seen the likes of it before, and it was by no means pretty. I suddenly felt grateful of the advanced medicinal practices of my world.

"Gekko-san..." I said hesitantly when Tsunade finished debriefing him. He turned mildly surprised eyes to meet mine, and abruptly had a violent coughing fit. I patiently waited for him to recover before continuing, "may I please speak privately with you for a minute?"

He looked slightly confused, but nonetheless nodded in agreement. We both glanced at Tsunade, who raised her eyebrow in reply.

"Alright, I know when I'm not needed. I needed more sake, anyways..." she muttered on her way out the door."

I smiled gratefully at her retreating back, "thank you." A certain male voice brought me back to the situation.

"Kagome-san? What is it you needed?"

A nervous feeling settled itself in my stomach. "W-well, you see..." I paused, but suddenly I felt sure of myself; he deserved to know what was plaguing himself. "I know what's wrong with your lungs."

Hayate's tired eyes widened in disbelief before narrowing. "If this is some cruel joke..."

"It isn't! I would never do something like that to anyone!" My desperation must have reached him, for he paused and gestured for me to continue. "You have what people from my land call bronchitis. However, yours seems chronic. I assume you've had this condition for a while?" At his nod I went on. "Then I may be able to help you."

"How? Nobody has ever been able to figure out what's wrong before, let alone cure it. What makes you any different?"

I could understand where he was coming from. Hearing that nobody knew what was wrong with him and that there was no cure, and suddenly along comes a foreigner with the answers to his problems. However, I wasn't about to give up.

"I know how you feel, but you must trust me. I only want to help you! Please, hear me out!" I said fervently.

"..."

I took his silence as the go-ahead, "If you let me work with you for one hour a day, when you don't have missions, I will be able to heal your lungs back into shape in no time," I said. "If you don't want to do this... I understand. I... I just want to help you. I hope you consider my offer, Gekko-san."

An unreadable expression took over his eyes before he pat a friendly hand on my shoulder. "I don't know why, but I feel as though I should trust you. I've never had anyone try so hard for me before. For this, I thank you. I will do it."

A gentle smile spread across my face. "No, thank you, Gekko-san, for letting me be selfish."

Hayate looked slightly surprised. "Selfish? No, I think you're one of the most selfless of people I've met." He took his hand off of my shoulder and took a step back. "When shall we meet first?"

"I think tomorrow would do just fine, unless if you have a mission or are otherwise busy."

"I can think of nothing," he said. "I will see you tomorrow then, around noon."

A bang sounded and wisps of smoke dissipated quickly.

"...ashi-san? Higurashi-san?"

I blinked as I roused from my thoughts at the sound of Kakashi's voice. "Yes? Is Ibiki-san ready?"

"He is. I'm to escort you to him," Kakashi said.

I smiled brightly and flounced over to him. "Great! Let's get this over with."

Kakashi's eyes crinkled in a smile and suddenly we were poofed away.

I didn't think I'd ever get used to that.

I hope I didn't make Gekko OOC. It's hard to write him, considering there was so little of him in the story. Please tell me if you feel he should be different.

Thank you kindly for your reviews. I really appreciate it.