Shikamaru lost a game of Shoji.
Temari suspected he let her win, but Shikamaru looked so stunned when she finished him off it remained only a suspicion. Temari did a touchdown dance at the end, and Shikamaru still looked like he couldn't believe it. He looked ready to pull his ponytail out.
Temari grinned and they shook hands when Shikamaru had gotten over his shock and Temari had finished her dance.
Then they proceeded to make out in the middle of the room.
OOOOOOOOO
Misao finished showering very quickly; she wanted to get clear before her parents really got started. But, to her surprise, there wasn't any noise from the bedroom. Misao threw on a pair of sleep pants and a cami, walked back to the bathroom, put her towel in the laundry basket, and went to her parents' bedroom. She tried to doorknob-it wasn't locked. Hesitantly, Misao opened the door.
Both of her parents were asleep on the bed.
Misao grinned and backed out. Tsunade and Kakashi were probably both so exhausted they were about to fall into a coma. A full day's and night's sleep would do them both wonders. Misao glanced at the clock next to Tsunade's bed; 9:30. Misao sighed and went downstairs to the kitchen, looking for something to eat.
Iruka was sitting at the table.
"What?" Misao asked. She knew Iruka; he was a quiet Chuunin who had the skills of a jounin, but he wanted to remain a Chuunin to respect his parents' wishes. His parents had never wanted him to be a ninja, despite being shinobi themselves. They claimed they wanted to spare delicate Iruka the pain. Iruka, though, against all odds, rose to be an excellent shinobi rapidly. However, after the Kyuubi attack, Iruka just seemed to lose it. He became quiet, withdrawn, and unstable. Sarutobi helped him up, though, but Iruka just didn't want to go any further. Sarutobi accepted his decision to remain a Chuunin and let him do what he thought was right.
"I have something for Tsunade-sama."
"She passed out in the bedroom."
Iruka's eyes widened, and Misao smirked. She loved scaring him too much…
"Nothing like that, stupid. She's not drunk, and she didn't go out on a gambling spree. She's just tired. Did you see her whooping ass out there?"
"Yeah, but still…" Iruka shook his head. "It doesn't stop one from worrying. Anyway, she asked for a few papers and statistics-"
"Of course, just give them to me, I'll give them to her when she wakes up. She's always a bear if you wake her up, so I don't think you want to risk your neck just yet."
Iruka nodded. "I'm too young to die."
He handed Misao a thick envelope, and Misao took it without any questions. "You want anything? Something to drink?"
"No, I'm okay. Thanks, though."
Misao shrugged. "Suit yourself. I need something to eat though…"
"Go ahead, I ate already."
"Thanks."
Iruka sat quietly for a moment, until Misao broke the uncomfortable silence. "So…what exactly are those papers…?"
"Calculations of losses and casualties. Math equations. Mission and medical records."
Misao nodded. "How come you have a brain the size of a watermelon, and mine sometimes seems to be the size of a grape?"
"I'm twice your age."
"Your head's not even that big!"
Iruka shrugged. "I'm smart?"
Misao smiled and opened the door to the fridge. "Leftovers," she said. "Not so bad if you've been eating nothing but your entire life."
Iruka laughed. "Better than having a brain the size of a watermelon."
"Not better; you probably know how to cook."
"…This is true…"
"See?"
Iruka smiled. "Whatever. Will you get those to Hokage-sama as soon as possible?"
"Hai, hai; don't worry!"
Iruka sighed. "Get them to her."
"Go."
Iruka sighed again and slipped out of the house as quietly as he had come in. Misao fell onto the couch with her plastic container of leftovers and began to eat. She wondered when her parents were likely to wake up; it was probably going to be a while, given how exhausted both seemed…
Misao set her now-empty plastic container aside, stretched out, and fell asleep.
OOOOOOOOO
Kabuto sat on Orochimaru's bed, idly fingering the edges of the sheets. He remembered making the bed only a few days ago…and no one would ever disturb it again. He might have had to make it one last time if Orochimaru had only lived a little longer…
Kabuto fell back against the many pillows he had stacked against the headboard, drawing a deep breath and fighting back tears. With that deep breath, he also inhaled a bit of the scent on the pillows; smoke and sandalwood. The pillows still smelled like him…Kabuto had always wondered what gave him that unique scent. Maybe it was what he washed with…Kabuto looked to the side and saw several strands of black hair. Kabuto sat up and moved the pillows slightly to the side, looking for the source.
A lock of black hair, tied with a red satin ribbon and a small note, lay underneath.
My dearest Kabuto-I know you'll go snooping around after I leave-and I would expect nothing less. You'll probably be looking for something to remember me by, something to ease the pain, if only a bit. So, I want you to have this. It's from my original body, and I took it as well as my hand, just in case I ever cared about anyone enough to want them to be able to remember me not as their tyrant leader, but as someone they cared about-a friend. And I'm probably underestimating you, in that you'll wait until I'm gone to look for this, but hey, you never know…if anyone else finds this, bad things will happen. So, don't let anyone find it!! Keep it close to you at all times, and don't let anyone else ever have it. Burn it with you when you die, because no one will ever deserve this as much as you do. Good luck finding my experiments. If you can find them, you can have them.
Ja ne,
Orochimaru-sama
Kabuto smiled and fingered the lock of hair, knowing that Orochimaru knew him far too well. He would obey the sannin's last words, in a way…
The door creaked open, and Kabuto slid the lock of hair back into the pillows. Tayuya stood in the doorway, looking forlorn and distant.
"I once slept in here…as a prank…we wound up having an affair. For a while, Orochimaru-sama loved me…and then…he just…stopped, is really the best way to put it. He told me he couldn't be with me anymore, so I respected his wishes and walked out. But then I found out he had been cheating on me, and I was so mad I ran away. Kimi brought me back, and Orochimaru-sama and I just ignored each other for a while. And then…Kimi and I started to like each other. I was hesitant, but eventually we wound up with each other and so far…things are looking great."
Kabuto smiled. "I'm happy for you."
"Good!" Tayuya said teasingly, trying to lighten the mood. "Otherwise, I might bop you over the head with…this pillow!" She picked up one of the pillows and gave Kabuto a whack on the head. Kabuto shook his head and handed her the note. Tayuya read it slowly, failing to notice that it was a genjutsu from Kabuto to hide the real one. It was similar, but Kabuto had taken out the parts about Orochimaru's last gift to him. Tayuya finished, tears forming in the corners of her eyes, and handed the note back to Kabuto.
"He really liked you…"
Kabuto nodded. "He did…he left it here." He pointed to the pillow in front of him. "He said he knew I would go looking around once he was gone, so he left it here…"
Tayuya nodded, then leaned forward and sniffed at the pillows. "Still smells like him…"
Kabuto's tears began to grow thick and heavy. He tried to blink them back, but the tears were so big, they overflowed onto his cheeks. Kabuto felt two arms tenderly circle his shoulders, and Tayuya wrapped her arms around him, trying to offer a small bit of comfort. Kabuto took a shuddering breath and waited.
Tayuya was crying, too.
OOOOOOOOO
Kimimaro glanced at the picture of himself with Orochimaru. That damn bastard…he had played him. And Kimimaro needed someone like him, or whom he thought he was, that he played right into Orochimaru's hands. It was sad, really. And then he found out about Tayuya-just everything, really. And he finally broke free of the illusion Orochimaru had cast over him. He was now very happy that he had gotten sick and Orochimaru had abandoned him-he still had his soul. And then Kabuto…he had yet to thank Kabuto and Tayuya, to that extent, for breaking Orochimaru's veil of beauty. Kimimaro picked up the picture and stared at it for another minute. He must have been five…
Kimimaro hurled the picture across the room, hearing the glass shatter. He pulled his knees into his chest, yanking the clasps from his hair-
And cried.
OOOOOOOOO
Kabuto heard the glass shattering and ran into the next room; Kimimaro's. The teen was curled up on his bed, knees pressed to his chest, face buried in his knees, sobbing his heart out.
"Kimi, what's wrong?"
Kabuto cried, rushing over to him. "Are you hurt? What happened? I heard glass…"
Kabuto noticed the glass in the corner and sighed. He went over to the patch of shattered glass and gently tugged the picture from the broken frame. He exhaled slowly when he saw it, and suddenly understood what Kimimaro was upset about.
"Please don't scare me like that."
Kimimaro didn't react at all. Kabuto went back to him and wrapped his arms around him, pulling the teen into his chest. Tayuya tackled them both.
"Group hug!"
Kimimaro couldn't help but laugh at this, wiping away his tears with the back of his hand. "Since when were you a prep?"
"I'm not," she said. "But I'm sick of everyone moping over that bastard!"
"Amen," Kimimaro said dryly. He clasped Tayuya's upraised hand, and Kabuto pulled himself out of the tangle. "Um…what now…?"
Kabuto smiled. "We find a purpose for this place-we become a normal shinobi village. We learn from Orochimaru-sama's mistakes, and we make ourselves as decent as possible. I know it won't ever be enough to completely compensate for Orochimaru-sama's deeds, but we can try."
Kimimaro nodded. "And…Tayuya wants to get pregnant."
Kabuto's eyes widened.
"What…the…fuck…?"
A/N: Well, there's the joke of the day…review please, no flaming.