Naruto: Next Generation Romance
Disclaimer: See a psychologist if you think I own Naruto. A good one.
Sorry for the slight delay. I'm not going to give any lame excuse, just remind everyone that it is September and that means school. You're not here to read author's notes, right? So get on with the story already!
N.H
Kippei felt fearful, yet brave as he approached his sensei. Kiba was standing there with his arms crossed, waiting impatiently. Kippei gulped and took his position in front of Kiba.
"Ready?" Kiba asked in an intimidating voice. Kippei nodded uneasily and got into his Hyuga fighting stance. "Here I come!" Using his incredible speed again, Kiba flashed in front of Kippei and sliced at his face. Luckily, Kippei saw this in time and was able to back away, unharmed. But the close call made his heart race.
If he's using this much speed, Kippei thought. Then I'm going to have to use it. Kippei closed his eyes and relaxed for a moment. Kiba froze and allowed Kippei to focus. When he was done, his eyes shot open. "Byakugan!" Veins that led to his eyes became visible. A ring formed in the center of his eye to give him an invisible pupil.
"Oh, so you're using the Byakugan, eh?" Kiba mocked. "Well, tough luck for you. 'Cause I know a lot about those eyes of yours."
Kippei's features hardened. "Think you know a lot, huh? Well, come try to attack me, Kiba sensei."
"With pleasure." Kippei smirked. But that was soon wiped away when something hard and strong was thrown at his back. Kippei fell over and his hands and knees breathing heavily. With his Byakugan, he should've seen that, no matter how fast it was! Maybe his Byakugan was underdeveloped.
"Oof!" Kiba's knee came from below and slammed Kippei off the ground. This guy isn't holding back at all… Is he intending to kill me? Before Kippei could do so much as open his eyes, he was struck again. Shoulder, chest, forearm. Slashing and bruising, Kiba kept at it. Meanwhile, Kippei was howling in pain.
Still in her secluded hiding spot, Mine squeezed the cloth of her shirt. Her clenched fist began shaking as tears fell upon it. This was brutal… How could they ever dream of passing this test if he was going to kill them! Just look at what happened to Isamu… And Kippei! Oh no… He was going to die and it would be all Mine's fault. She would probably have cared more about becoming a ninja than Kippei's life. But that wasn't going to happen. Not being able to bear Kippei's screams any longer, she charged out in the open and flung a kunai at her sensei. Kippei was not going to die.
The whizzing kunai had caught Kiba's attention, but it was too late for him to avoid it. The kunai dug deep into his shoulder, and forced him to drop the young Hyuga. Seeing his chance to escape, Kippei scrambled to his feet and joined Mine. Bruises and cuts were everywhere. He was forcing himself to breath.
"What are you… doing here Mine?" He heaved.
"I'm not going to let you die! Your life is more precious than me becoming a ninja!"
"Go away!"
"Why, Kippei? You're going to get killed!"
"Because your life is more precious to me than my own!" Mine froze in shock. She knew that Kippei liked her but… this?" "Go! Now! Before you get hurt!"
"Kippei…" Mine whispered, new tears forming in her eyes.
"I won't… let any of you… get hurt…"
"Congratulations." Kiba announced, approaching the two. They both froze. "You pass. Your whole team."
"What?" Kippei and Mine breathed.
"The whole point of this exercise was for you to realize what a ninja truly does. A ninja is to give his or her life to defend their village. The village that is precious to them. In turn, they must also defend the people who are important to them as well. Mine." She gave her sensei her full attention. "You knew that you had to disobey the rules to save Kippei. Friends are more important than your own life." Mine nodded and gave a small smile. "And Kippei." Kiba turned to the young man. "You wouldn't let Mine get hurt. You even said it yourself. Her life is more precious than yours."
"But… What about Isamu?" Mine asked.
Kiba smiled. "He came at me first, remember? That shows he has spirit. And bravery. He fought without holding back, and therefore will make an exceptional ninja."
"Wow, Kiba sensei… How'd you figure all that out?" Mine's emerald eyes widened.
Kiba chuckled. "Naruto, actually. How else do you think he became the Hokage? He realized that all on his own."
"Uncle Naruto…" Kippei whispered, amazed. He'd never questioned his uncle's ability as a ninja, but he had questioned why he obtained the power.
Kiba smiled broadly. "You guys are now officially genin! Congratulations!" The two returned Kiba's huge smile, the radiance glowing on their faces. "Let's get Isamu and Kippei checked into the hospital. Heh heh. Sorry I was a little hard on you." Kiba scratched the back of his head and smiled meekly.
"That's alright, Kiba sensei." Kippei assured him. "You had to do what had to be done."
Mine nodded in agreement. "If you hadn't gone that far, we would've never passed."
"Aw, thanks guys!" Their 'wild' sensei exclaimed enthusiastically. He then walked over to the unconscious Isamu and hung him over his shoulder. "Mine? Would you help Kippei walk?"
"Huh?" Mine was oblivious for a moment before realizing. "Oh! Right. Sorry about that." Mine bent over and offered her shoulders to Kippei. He gave a small smile of thanks before swinging his arm over both of her shoulders. They began walking towards the hospital, Mine and Kippei shuffling their feet. In front of them, Kiba was whistling a merry tune. It actually matched the voices of the morning birds that had just come out. After a long silence between the two new genin, Mine decided to speak up. "Kippei. Thanks for… you know."
He smiled. "No problem. You would've done the same for me."
Mine giggled. "But I don't know if I could be that dramatic! I felt like I was in a movie!"
"Well," Kippei flipped his hair. "I was born to be a star, after all." Mine giggled again. "But, Mine? I think I owe you an apology."
"For what?"
Kippei shrugged. "For acting like a stalker to you lately… It's just…" He looked down.
"Just what?"
"Um… not that you haven't always, but lately… you seem a lot prettier." Both of them blushed, Mine's more deep than Kippei's. "So… uh, sorry for being so desperate. Like Isamu said yesterday, I was probably freaking you out."
Mine smirked. "Your complimenting me and apologizing to me. Are you trying to get me to like you? Get me to think you're some ultra-sweet guy?"
"N-No! Of course not! I just felt bad about…" There was a hint of falseness in his white eyes that gave it away. But just a hint.
Mine looked away, blushing a bit. "If you are, then you're getting better at it." Kippei stared at Mine for a few moments, shocked. After a little while, Mine's emerald gaze drifted over to him. For a moment, green and white met. But that connection soon vanished when Kippei looked away nervously. "And Kippei," He gulped. "You don't look half bad either." This statement made the young Hyuga blush yet again.
"T-Thanks." They spent the rest of the way sending nervous glances to each other.
N.H
"Alright, Mr. Uzumaki. You're free to go." The nurse gave him a genuine smile.
"Alright. Thanks." Isamu gave the nurse a quick nod before leaping off his chair and bounding towards Kippei's room. He zipped through the halls, reading the room numbers. 218...219...220! There it was. Isamu was about to barge in before he remembered to knock first.
"You can come in." Called a female voice. Isamu turned the knob and pushed the door open. A soft squeak erupted from the doors hinges when he shut it behind him. "Oh, hi Isamu."
"Oh. Mine. Where's Kippei? I heard he was in this room." Isamu began scanning the room, his sapphire eyes flashing from one side of the room to the next. His bed looked rested in…
"He's in the bathroom." She explained. "How're you doing, Isamu?"
He smiled. "Great. Got a nasty scratch on my stomach, but I'm fine. Did you fight Kiba?"
She shook her head. "We passed before I got a chance to. Sorta glad I didn't though. He was merciless against poor Kippei."
"I heard. How bad was it?"
Mine sighed. "His jaw was hit pretty badly. And he's got those same scratches everywhere. Now that's he's been here for a little while, it's not as bad."
"Oh. That's good." Isamu stretched his arms above his head. "Are you going to stay here with Kippei, or are you gonna go home?"
"I think I'll stay with Kippei. I want to make sure he's alright."
Isamu smiled. "Alright. I would stay too, but you don't want to know what happens when my parent's get worried. They probably just found out I was admitted into the hospital."
Mine giggled. "I already told my parents what happened. My dad saw us going to the hospital. Once he found out what happened, he nearly punched Kiba sensei right in the face! And I think Kippei's mom knows. She said she'd be here as soon as she could."
"So I'm the only one who's going to get it bad?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
"What? You're not going to back me up?"
"No way. You're on your own." After she said this, Isamu crossed his arms and gave Mine a pleading look. But she shook her head, resisting the cutest face Isamu could muster. He remembered when he used to do that when he was five. Whenever he'd do that, he'd always get his way. It used to really piss his sister off.
"Fine. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then." Isamu gave a quick wave and darted out the door. He realized the longer he talked, the more worried his parents would get. At least he wouldn't have to worry until he got home. But, Isamu's luck ran out. Naruto and Hinata had just entered the hospital. Oh, crap. Hinata was the first to notice their son.
"Isamu!" She cried. Hinata ran up to him and locked him into a tight hug. He gagged once or twice. And out of the corner of his eye, he could see his father. His arms were crossed and he had a stern expression was carved on his face. Couldn't both of them be relieved? Hinata released her son.
"What happened? Are you okay!?"
"Uh huh." Isamu sent a nervous glance to his father.
"I'm so glad you're okay! We heard you got in the hospital, but they didn't tell us how bad it was! If you were okay, then why didn't you tell us?"
"Uh, I was just about to do that…"
"Isamu?" Naruto asked.
"Yeah?"
"How did you get in the hospital?"
"Well, Kiba sensei was giving us a test, the real one to become a genin. He knocked me out and scratched me up a bit. Apparently, he was harder on Kippei and he has to stay longer. But we passed." Hinata looked at Naruto. They exchanged a look that signified they had the same thought. Isamu didn't know what it was, but he got the feeling it wasn't positive.
N.H
The next morning, Isamu came down the stairs, rubbing his still sleepy eyes. Surprisingly, he'd gotten dressed before he had breakfast. We've already mentioned his sleeveless dark blue sweatshirt with the leaf symbol on the back in orange. Well, he wears a bright orange T-shirt under that, whose sleeves are only visible. Matching that were just plain black pants. His mom kept getting on his case, reminding him that Konoha was a warm country, and it wouldn't be smart to wear dark colors. But Isamu was content with his outfit, and quite stubborn. Isamu entered the kitchen and found Yuzuyu doing her nails at the island they had.
She looked up and when she saw her younger brother enter, she said, "Finally! I'm waiting for breakfast."
"Why don't you make your own breakfast!?" Isamu snapped, taking a mixing bowl out.
"Because I can't cook. And I'll pay you."
Isamu rolled his eyes. "I'm a ninja now, which means I can earn my own money. You can't bribe me anymore."
"It's your turn to cook today, anyway."
"Whatever."
Later that day when breakfast was over with, Isamu went in search for Mine. Today was Friday, and they always trained on Friday. They've been doing that since they started the academy. But of course, her house had to be far away. He bumped into a few people who brushed Isamu off and said, "Oh! Entirely my fault, Isamu-sama. I'm very sorry." It annoyed him, and in fact, he completely ignored them and went on his way.
"Isamu!" Said person turned to the direction of the voice, a curious expression on his face.
"Mine!" He called back once the owner of the voice was revealed. "Ready to train today?"
She froze in front of Isamu and her face paled a bit. "About that… I was wondering if Kippei could join us today."
"Huh? But we always train alone. Why Kippei all of a sudden?"
"Well," She blushed. "We're sort of… going out."
N.H
You should've seen that coming. If you didn't, then… Anyway, what do you think about this chapter? If it sucks, let me know. If it's confusing, tell me. And if it's awesome, then you better review! Also, who do you think would make a better couple? Mine and Isamu or Mine and Kippei? It's not going to change what I have planned, but I'm just curious. Looking forward to your reviews!