HELLO MY DEARS. So i want to say a few things before you guys read on. So this chapter is just a peek into the first few days after they finished with the prelims. So lots of scenes and cuts, because i just really want to write them lmao

And there is going to be a fun event (which is just entirely made up by yours truly) in the next chapter before we go on to more serious stuff. SO ONWARDS

Chapter Thirty-One: Fun and Games

Everyone was training hard nowadays. And obviously Mononoke was no exception. After pleasantly sleeping for an entire day (with Shikamaru, of course), the Yorukami child was pumped to start getting her game on.

Kicking upwards, a trail of ice followed her movements, shooting upwards in a graceful arc. With her hand facing the tip of the ice wave, she dragged the ice along, creating a writhing ribbon of frost. Twirling, she shot the ice upwards before it explodes in a flurry of shards, like fireworks.

Deadly and beautiful.

A soft padding of footsteps caused the ice to disintegrate as Mononoke turned around to meet the intruder. Whoever they were, they must have been downwind of her since she didn't notice their scent. That, ir her nose wasn't wirking again.

To her absolute surprise, Hyuga Neji was standing there, looking a little bewildered that she noticed him.

Putting a hand on her hip, Mononoke smirked at him, "Well, what did I do to deserve a visit from the King of Stuck-Up Land?"

He snorted in reply before taking a few steps closer, "I was just passing through when you showed off."

The girl clicked her tongue in mock disdain, placing a hand on her chest sassily, "Me? Show off? Who put that idea in your head?"

Neji didn't answered her as he came closer. Without warning, he leaned in to punch but she dodged it, moving slightly out of range. Then she used two fingers to press his headband and pushed him away, "Woah there, tiger. What's the rush?"

He scowled at her before throwing another knife handed jab.

Leaping back, Mononoke snorted as she landed gently on the grass, "You know, if you wanted to fight me, you could always ask nicely. Or else I might accidentally break your arm."

Tilting her head, she watched as the Hyuga moved to a strange fighting stance. Cocking her head this way and that like a curious puppy, Mononoke spoke up, "So are you going to ask, or...?"

"Shut up and fight me." The Hyuga deadpanned, causing his opponent to grin widely, "That's not so hard, is it?"

But her smile quickly fell away as she closed in.

After almost two hours of sparring, Mononoke waved her hand, panting. "Okay, you got me. Time out." She plopped to the ground and threw her head back, leaning on her hands. She took in a few gulps of air, trying to get her breath back. All her muscles were aching.

Neji was panting as well and he didn't look any better. Their scuffle was quite rough. Mononoke thinks she must've got a few nasty bruises that might last for some time. He even closed off three chakra points on her body, nothing harmful but still numbing.

Without a word, Neji sat down where he stood and Mononoke could hear his breathing get harsher as he caught his breath back.

"... You're... You're pretty good." he admitted after a few moments and Mononoke laughed, looking back at him, "Yeah? You're not so bad yourself, girly."

"I'm a guy, you idiot." Neji deadpanned.

She gave him a look of mock surprised, "And all this time I thought you were just another pretty girl? There goes my chance."

The Hyuga raised an eyebrow at her, "Did you just come out to me?"

"I never said I was straight. Besides, what's wrong with liking both? Both is good." she said it so good-naturedly, Neji wasn't sure he should believe her or not.

When she saw the look on his face, Mononoke immediately start bursting out laughing. Neji blinked at her as she tried to breathe through her laughs, since she was still breathless from the fight just now. But heck, her giggles were adorable.

The Hyuga caught himself. He's not crushing on her, he already have someone else in mind. But this girl was something else, that's for sure.

Mononoke wiped her tears away before crossing her legs to a sit, still smiling at him as she engaged conversation. "So, I can't help but notice that your taijutsu is really specific. Lots of repetition in your movements." Well, she's pretty observant. Neji nodded. "Gentle Fist. It's passed down in the Hyuga clan."

The kunoichi's mouth curled into an 'o', understanding, "Nice. Mind showing it to me again? I mean, after resting, of course, you look like something the dog dragged in."

Neji snorted before mirroring her, leaning back on his hands, "Not until you show me your secrets."

The girl smiled innocently, shrugging, "I'm an open book."

Neji gave her an incredulous look. She just sniggered, "You can't learn it if you want to. It's a gift." To prove a point, she flicked her wrist and a small flurry of frost formed and disappeared. She heard him scoffed, "Not that. Your fighting style is unpredictable anyway."

Mononoke waggled her eyebrows, "So what kind of secrets do you want to know?" He frowned at the look on her face. She caught a slight redness hinting on his pale cheeks and stifled a giggle.

"Never mind." the Hyuga coughed and looked away, "Forget what I said."

The kunoichi just shook her head, smiling. Maybe Hyuga Neji's not such a stick in the mud after all.

Mononoke sighed.

She was beside Kiba's hospital bed. He was pretty busted up so he had to be admitted. Hana-chan couldn't really do anything, since she was a vet. Humans and animals are entirely different type of beings, Shikaku told her that. You can't heal both in the same way.

Humans are too delicate. And fussy.

He was still sleeping. The silverette pushed his hair away from his face, taking in his soft features. Akamaru was snuggled on his chest, the puppy moving up and down as Kiba breathed. The girl sighed and buried her face into his shoulder, taking in his scent.

It soothed her to smell him. After all, they had been best friends since kids, they always slept in the same bed when they have his scent was pretty much like a lullaby for her.

Suddenly, she felt her skin crawled. Something was lurking in the hospital.

Mononoke lifted her head, trying to understand the bloodthirsty aura that was creeping through. It felt familiar...

Her eyes widened in realization and ran out. Opening the door, she looked across the corridors. It was eerily quiet. Without a second thought, she immediately began to look for Lee.

Passing room after room, she finally found it. And the door was opened.

When she entered, she saw Shikamaru and Naruto frozen at the doorway.

And beside the slumbering Lee, Gaara was standing there intimidatingly, sand floating around the small hospital room. A ring of sand was forming around Lee's neck.

"Gaara?" Mononoke said softly and all eyes turned to her.

"Mononoke? What're you doing here? Get out!" she heard Shikamaru seethed quietly but she ignored him as she stepped closer to the redhead. She gave him a small smile, her entire body was relaxed as she spoke to him, "Gaara, can you take the sand away from Lee? Please?"

The Sand ninja just stared at her with empty eyes. Seconds seemed to drag for hours as everyone watched Mononoke. Then, as slow and steady as a snail, sand began to seep away from Lee, returning to the gourd on Gaara's back. But the redhead was still looking at her. Without breaking eye contact with him, Mononoke spoke to the other two, "Naruto. Shikamaru. Can you give us a moment."

It wasn't a question.

She heard some shuffling behind her and the sound of the door closing shut.

Mononoke lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding and walked closer to Gaara. That was close. She had a bad feeling that Gaara was going to do something unsightly if the other two remained. He didn't move as the Konoha ninja came close enough that he could see his reflection in her aquamarine eyes. "I want to take you somewhere, if you'd like." she offered gently, giving him a lopsided smile.

After a few heartbeats, he nodded.

When they came out of the room, Shikamaru only watched in bafflement as Mononoke walked out with the Sand ninja following behind her silently.

He and Naruto didn't dare to speak, much less breathe, when Gaara glared at the both of them. But when Mononoke made a soft hum of wonder, his frightening gaze moved away as he walked up beside the girl.

The Nara just watched as Mononoke gave the Sand ninja a sweet smile before clasping her hands behind her back, trotting off.

Why was Mononoke so relaxed with that guy? He was about to murder Lee in cold blood just a moment ago. He and Naruto would've been next, had she not come. But then again, Gaara made no move to kill her, instead he respected her wishes and went off with her.

"That was close. But Mononoke-chan..." Naruto said with a gulp and Shikamaru just sighed, "She'll be okay." At least, he hoped so.

Gaara didn't know where she was taking him. He wasn't interested in the layout of this village anyway. And he didn't understand why he agreed to come, or listened to her.

Maybe it was because of the way she looked at him, or the way she talked, or just the way she is. But if she was going to lead him into a trap... He would kill her. There was no question to it.

"This way, Gaara." her voice pulled him out of his thoughts. He realized where they were headed now. They stood in front of a rather dense part of the forest that circled the village. Mononoke gave him a grin as her body was angled towards the forest, "You coming?"

He dipped his head and followed her.

It was pleasant as he followed her trail. The forest was filled with hushed sounds of life inside. Even the air here seemed cooler, fresher. But Gaara never allowed his guard to fall. Soon, he began to hear the sound of rushing water.

Finally, Mononoke stopped beside a waterfall. The water fell in a way that a small rainbow sparkled in its wake. She sat beside the stream without a word. Gaara didn't move any closer. She turned her head to look back, and she smiled at him before patting the place beside her. He was hesitant but strangely, the sound of water soothed him. Obediently, he settled at her side.

She didn't speak for a few minutes, but Gaara didn't mind. He just sat there. But soon, she spoke up.

"Don't be the monster they think you are." He stiffened at her comment but she continued, her eyes still on the dancing river, "I don't want them to hate you, Gaara. You're so much more than that." She turned to look at him and Gaara saw the look in her eyes. But he didn't understand it.

He didn't dared move when her hand moved to his forehead, brushing his hair aside as she touched the love kanji. "Did you do that?" she asked softly and he dipped his head a little.

"Why?"

Gaara tore his gaze away from her quickly, her hand flinched back at the look in his eyes. "So I can know that I truly exist. I will kill everyone and love only myself." his voice was cold enough to freeze fire. He was angry. But Mononoke wasn't afraid. Instead she sighed, before turning back to the water.

"You know what its like, don't you? To have something inside you?" she asked, her hand absentmindedly going to her gut. Yesterday when she was bathing, she realized the seal on her chest had moved just below her ribs, where her central chakra was. And in the middle of the switl was a small kanji for god. She didn't understand why or how the seal moved and its recent development but she guessed it was when she was meditating and Gintaro told her to never try it again until someone comes along. Whoever that someone was.

Gaara was quiet as she continued, "Only one person knows I have him. Something sealed inside me. It's strange, but I have a feeling there's something inside you as well. And I guess they know it, those from Sand. I can see it, the wariness in their eyes."

He turned to her as she said this. No one had showed so much raw emotion to him before, and he didn't know how to take it. So he did what he usually would do. Sand began to envelope Mononoke and she closed her eyes.

"Gaara."

The sand froze. When she opened her eyes to look at him, all he saw was determination. She moved closer to him, tentatively. The sand parted enough for their faces to be only inches from each other. Then, Mononoke smiled at him affectionately, her canines poking out as her lips pulled upwards. Her eyes was staring into his own, sparkling like the river beside them.

"I'm your friend, Gaara. And I will never hurt you. You don't need to kill people to know your existence. Be the Gaara I feel inside the darkness. There's so much more to you than you know." her words were quiet and comforting.

But Gaara was scared.

Who was this girl? How is she breaking the wall he built? He never felt so much fear, fear of the power she has over him. But her words were like a lifeline to him. He has a friend. A friend! But what if she left, like how everyone he loved did? Did he ever loved anyone?

Before he had any more time to mull it over, Mononoke pulled back and glared at something behind them. That's when he heard a rustling. Any emotion he had on his face just now was wiped off, leaving an empty look as he turned his head to look at the river.

"Gaara, there you are." Baki said as he approached a few steps closer. Mononoke bristle at the sight of the Sand Jonin, a soft growl revving in her throat like a defensive canine. Absentmindedly, Gaara's sand brushed against her skin to reassure her as it returns to its gourd. He noticed she relaxed a little although the growl was still there.

Gaara tilted his head slightly, "What?" His voice was neutral, which is a good sign. Baki flickered his gaze to the Leaf nin mometarily before speaking up again, "We need to discuss something with the others."

The redhead nodded before getting up. Mononoke looked away from Baki to turned to him. Gaara met her eyes before speaking quietly, "Thank you for taking me here." He didn't know why he thanked her but the words just fell out when those soft eyes looked at him.

Then he followed Baki out of the clearing.

Mononoke sighed before turnin back to the river. Well, she tried. She just hope Gaara won't kill anyone for the time being.

Shikamaru was in his room, biting his lip as he sat in the middle of his room. His mind was swarming about the incident just now. He couldn't make head or tail of what happened. Where was that troublesome woman? What happened between her and that Sand ninja?

"I'm home." The Nara boy's head immediately shot up the moment he heard her tired voice. He got up and rushed out. He came out just in time to see his dad pet the silverette's head, asking about her day. His mom was nowhere to be seen. He dimly remembered that she was out with Ino's and Chouji's mothers.

Without thinking, he went and grabbed Mononoke's shoulders urgently. Her eyes flew open in surprise as he spluttered, "What's going on?" She blinked a few times before giving him a confused smile, "What, Shika?"

Shikamaru only groaned in exasperation, "You know what I'm talking about. What's with you and that Gaara guy?"

He watched as her eyes cleared in realization, her mouth curled knowingly. Then she grinned at him, "Gaara's a friend. He'll never hurt me." The Nara heir just narrowed his eyes at her, "But he would've killed Lee?"

Mononoke straightened defiantly, catching Shikamaru by surprised at the firm tone of her voice, "He was just confused. Gaara won't do it anymore." Although she was shorter than him, Shikamaru suddenly felt smaller under her levelled gaze. He heard his father cleared his throat, "Whatever is happening between the two of you, best come clean or things will get messy."

Suddenly, Shikamaru was very aware how frantic he was looking. He was gripping Mononoke's shoulders so tightly the cloth on her shoulders were thoroughly crumpled. And they were in very close proximity. Close enough that their noses were almost touching.

He immediately released her, taking a step back as he rubbed the back of his neck, "Sorry, I got carried away." Mononoke just exhaled before smiling at him, "You're just worried. It's okay, I understand." She lifted her one shoulder up in a carefree way, "It's only natural, since Gaara is a bit... scary. But I'm home, safe and sound, see?"

Shikamaru just snorted, "Better thank your lucky stars for that."

"Oh, Shika. I am the lucky star."

"Kakashi?" Mononoke called as she entered his apartment. No one was around. His scent was faint, which probably means that he wasn't home for some time. She snorted before closing the door behind her.

As she assessed his home condition, she couldn't help click her tongue at the mess. Either this place was a hotel getaway or a war zone, there is no in between.

That's her Kakashi.

Mononoke picked up a book on the floor and mindlessly skimmed through its contents. Suddenly her face scrunched up, as if she tasted something extremely sour.

What in the sweet loving hell of demons created this despicable literature?

Sasuke and Mononoke groaned at the same time as they were dragged along by the other two of their teammates. They just finished another dumb mission. And they had to babysit a spoilt brat. Amazing what terrors lie underneath those cute faces sometimes.

Of course all Kakashi did was read his stupid perverted book. Mononoke wanted to claw her eyes out when she accidentally saw it two days ago. Or burn it in hellfire and feed it to Satan's pet bird.

But now, she had to succumb to more horrifying things.

Shopping.

They just had to. Of all the things they could do in the world, Sakura just had to go shopping. For a good reason really but they're doing it after another IQ depleting activity. Mononoke shared a dying look with Sasuke, who wasn't faring any better than she was. At least they had each other to share the burden.

He couldn't even cool his way out of this one.

Sakura can be a very stubborn woman, both of them learned it the hard way. She wouldn't take a no, even from 'Sasuke-kun'.

But she wanted to get all Team Seven a small trinket, to celebrate the three of them getting to the finals. Even Kakashi gets one, even though he wasn't tagging along with them this time.

But he did arranged to meet Sasuke the next day, at least that's what Mononoke sneakily heard.

Of course, she's jealous. Why did Duckbutt get all the nice things anyway? Well, life is unfair. But she could hardly complain. She was busy this whole time. At least she gets some free training with the Hyuga, even with his whole team once, and on some occasions, Shikamaru. And she did visited Kiba a few times the past week to see how he was faring. With all these activities, it was harder for her to spent time with Gaara as well, although she did managed to meet him twice so far after he almost killed Lee.

"Why can't we get it if we get promoted to Chunin? Wouldn't that make more sense?" Mononoke complained again, for about the fifth time and earned an agreeable grunt from Sasuke.

"Oh, suck it up, you two. We can leave after one last store." Sakura negotiated as she shook her head when Naruto pointed to another silver necklace. Well, he's enjoying himself. It must've been lonely to be by himself after a mission, Mononoke guessed. As much as she was happy that he was happy, she hated shopping.

"But you said that twenty minutes ago." This time, it was Sasuke who complained.

Kakashi knocked on the Nara's front door, waiting patiently. He decided to drop by today because he hadn't had the time to see the little scoundrel. He was busy training Sasuke. Not that he had a preference, but Anko had said that they had to be wary of the boy.

It seems Orochimaru had taken a fancy to the child. And who better than he to keep an eye on the Uchiha?

Knowing her, Mononoke would've been jealous if she knew about that. Kakashi smiled thinking of her. She can be really petty when it comes to Kakashi's attention.

The front door clicked opened but the child that stood before him wasn't his favourite kid. Instead, it was the heir of the Nara clan who looked as if the entire world owed him three months worth of sleep. Been there, done that, kid.

"Oh, hello, Shikamaru. Is Mononoke home?" Kakashi asked politely but the boy shook his head, "She went out with Sakura, but knowing her, she'll drag herself back soon enough."

Shikamaru hesitated but continued, "Do you want to come in and wait for her?"

Kakashi thought about it. There wasn't anything important for him to do later anyway. And he missed the scamp. Wouldn't hurt to wait for her for awhile.

"Sure. Thanks for asking." Kakashi gave the boy a smile, his eye upturned. Shikamaru nodded and let the Jonin into the house, closing the door behind him.

For a few moments, both males stood awkwardly there, unsure what to do. Shikamaru sighed before entering the hall, "Make yourself at home, I guess."

Then, Kakashi had an idea, "Since we both are going to kill some time, Asuma told me you played Shogi as well. How about a game?" Shikamaru pricked up his ears and looked at the Copy Ninja, "You play too?"

"Well, before you became Asuma's new best friend, he has got to play with someone else before." Kakashi replied cheerfully, following the boy when Shikamaru beckoned him.

"Yeah, I guess." The pineapple head boy agreed and gestured for Kakashi to wait for him at the open corridor, the usual place he played with Asuma.

Kakashi obliged and sat there, looking around his surroundings.

The Nara home must've fit Mononoke well. She loves the smell of different herbs, especially after it rains where the air is fresh and cool. The petrichor here must be blissfully intoxicating for her. He couldn't help smiling as the thought drifted in his mind. It was a good choice to let her come here. Among other reasons.

When Shikamaru returned, he did the honor of arranging the pieces. As Kakashi helped out, he casually began to make conversation. "So how's Mononoke been treating you so far? Ever since she moved in." Shikamaru settled in front of the board. The pieces were laid. "She's pretty okay, I suppose."

Kakashi made the first move, "Do you know about her nightmares?"

The boy nodded, making his move, "Yeah. I usually wake up before her when that happens." Kakashi hummed in wonder, looking at the board, "Really? Why?"

Shikamaru shrugged, "No idea. I just do." The silver haired man nodded before making his move before looking at the Nara heir, "How does she deal with it?"

"Sometimes, she'll come over to my room and sleep beside me. But when she wakes up screaming at night, I usually go to her.", Shikamaru explained, his eyes on the board. He's being openly honest to Kakashi because he understands that the man cares for her. After all, he did took care of her when she was just a child.

As Shikamaru observed the board, he noticed something. Kakashi's moves were deceptive. The boy could see the possible routes Kakashi is taking. This guy's good. Shikamaru made his move and waited for Kakashi to make his turn.

"So how do you deal with her trashing?" The boy looked up in surprise, just to see Kakashi looking at him with an unreadable expression. Shikamaru felt his cheeks flushed, although he had no idea why, "... It's troublesome but I just try to sleep through it."

"Does she know about it?" Kakashi asked again, interested at his reaction, and the young boy shook his head, "No point telling her. The nightmares caused it. She's unconcious about what she's doing."

Kakashi couldn't help but feel satisfied with his answers. If Mononoke was ever going to wed, he would definitely prefer Shikamaru as her lifemate, in Yorukami terms. Well, he does get to be her last line of defense, if anyone wants to take her hand in the future. He was, after all, her second guardian, counting Gintaro.

The Copy Ninja hummed as he made his move. "You know, I got beaten up alot when she was younger, when the nightmares were wilder and fresh. But I'll tell you a trick." Kakashi said with a secretive smile. After he made a move, Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, confused, "Huh? What trick?"

"If you hug her while she's asleep, she'll quiet down and she won't move a muscle until she wakes up."

Kakashi moved a pawn before speaking again, "That's one way to calm her down. It's easy with the scamp. A hug is all you need to get her to relax, asleep or not." He looked up at the boy smiling, "But of course, it's up to you."

He was quite pleased to see the boy opening and closing his mouth like a fish, at loss of what to say. The boy's cheeks were red as he turned his attention back to the game.

Checkmate.

Call him a dirty player but Kakashi is always known to be a smooth talker. Another reason why he won most of the time he played with Asuma.

"I'm home!"

Kakashi hid a smile when he saw Shikamaru sat up ramrod straight, his face flushed when the scamp announced her return. Seems he did quite a number on the boy. The trick to win a game is to shake your opponent. In this case, Kakashi just did it for fun.

There was a moment of silence before he heard her rapid footsteps and squeals.

"Kakashi! You're here!"

He shifted sideways to greet the tumbling ball of energy. Mononoke threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. When she pulled away, Kakashi was surprised at the frown on her face as she squinted at him suspiciously, "Wait a minute, what're you doing here? Aren't you supposed to train Duckbutt?"

He gave her a look of mock surprise, "Why, is it wrong for me to visit my favourite little girl?" She looked at him dirtily and he chuckled, rubbing a thumb on her cheek, "Okay, you got me. I just missed having an idiot around."

"If that's the case, you can look for Naruto.." Mononoke rolled her eyes at him. He didn't retaliate. Instead, the Copy Ninja kept silent as he petted her. Then, Kakashi scratched the side of her head, behind her right ear, and to Shikamaru's surprise, she immediately relaxed and flung herself on his lap, almost purring like a cat, their previous banter forgotten.

Kakashi looked over to Shikamaru, who was gaping, and closed his eye into a smile. "Everyone has a soft spot." he said simply and made his move on the board.

"Not me." Mononoke protested weakly as she submitted to his touch, her body curling around Kakashi's back. He chuckled before stroking her hair, "You're like a cat and a dog yet you're a human. What are you, really, you scamp?"

Her eyes were closed as she leaned into his hand, mouth curled into a cat-like grin, "One of a kind."

For the rest of the game, Shikamaru was sneaking glances at the strange duo before him. He spotted Mononoke lifting her head up, drowsy eyes blinking lazily at the Shogi board to see its progress, before ducking down to rest her head on Kakashi's lap again. Now this was a sight he never saw before. But because of this, his mind wasn't exactly focused on the game until Kakashi checked him.

The lazy genius blinked in surprise. It's not like him to get checked. Tearing his attention away from Mononoke, Shikamaru refocused on the game intensely, sorting out a new battle plan.

So at least, in the end, the Nara still remain triumphant.

Kakashi played two more rounds before Shikaku came home with Yoshino. The husband and wife had went for a small gathering with the other Nara clan members.

When they arrived, the Copy ninja left in a hurry, not wanting to intrude on the respected Nara leader's time. Although Shikaku had insisted he stayed for dinner (and also despite a certain moonlight haired girl who was practically curled on his lap and not wanting to get up but got shoved off anyways), Kakashi managed to convinced them that he should go.

While having dinner, Shikamaru was quiet as he ate, his mind cluttering with so many things at once. Thankfully, Mononoke was talking to his parents as he was only listening half-heartedly to their conversations.

After seeing how Kakashi just tamed Mononoke as easily as blinking, Shikamaru puts some serious thought about what Kakashi had advised about her trashing. It would be nice to stop getting kicked at stupid o'clock in the morning. And all he had to do was just to cradle her as she slept.

But there was one problem.

Is he brave enough?

HAHAHAHHAHHA WELL SHIKA. ARE YOU? Kakashi approves ShikaMono tho LEL (AND I SHIP NEJITEN. Just saying)

And hey, a little plot movement on Mono's part as well! There is a reason why her seal moved but that would be explained later on. So yeah.

DID YOU GUYS LIKE IT THO R&R IF YOU MAY THANKS BEBS (tbh its my sole motivation to actually continue... okay maybe not as much as wanting to write Momo's story but still, its nice to see people actually appreciate my work, even if its not the best :'3)