Gohan
Steam and Sweat
Joining the Party
"Now where the hell did I put it…umm…no…uhh…lets see…nope…uhh…nope…damn it! I know I put it around here somewhere! But where?!"Gohan shouted, frustrated that he was unable to find his favorite jacket.
It had been about half-an-hour since he had gotten home, and the clock's minute hand was already moving into half-past five. Even though it was later in the afternoon then he had expected, the sun was still shining, and there was plenty of time for him to get washed up, and dress into his best for his night out. To top off this most anticipated of afternoons, he was going out with the four hottest kunoichis of his shinobi age group. He had to look his most casual-best if he was going to make a good impression on them.
Gohan had nothing to worry about in the value of the tickets or the hot-springs they were admitted for either. Firstly, they expired to around noon tomorrow, which meant he could stay their all night if he wanted too. Furthermore, the hot-springs were open 24-7, and not to mention the afternoons were always the best for spicing up high romanticism as well as making an impact on any guests or visitors. The onyx haired shinobi was certain the night was going to go well.
"FUCK! Where the hell is it!?"
Unfortunately, things this afternoon were going off to a bad start.
For the past forty-five minutes since he had gotten home, he had been freshening himself up for tonight, washing his hair, face and redressing into some new clothes. He had deposited his usual attire into the laundry, including his scarf and mesh-shirt. Free to dress into whatever outfits he wanted, Gohan picked himself out a white t-shirt, with blue jeans and matching blue sandals. All that was left was for him to find his orange and blue jacket, the one similar to the top he used to wear when he was younger, only this one had a white fluffy under-coat and collar. Obviously the boy's taste in orange hasn't faltered in these years, but his style certainly hasn't wasted away under all that orange.
The main problem being was that he had no idea where he threw his jacket.
Clothes came flying out of his open bedroom closet, accompanied by pairs of shoes, ninja scrolls, his infamous night-cap, several pairs of underwear, and a collection of vests and pants that were stashed at the very back of the dark and treacherous wasteland known as the storage center for his clothing. The young Jonin was muttering to himself and shouting various profanities, including ones never even heard of, as he dug and clawed at the piles of clothes he had just dumped in here. Because of all the missions he had been taking part in, in recent weeks, he had had little time to clear up his living area. As noted by the hundreds of clothes now tossed onto his bed.
"This is great! That's just great! If I can't find my jacket, I may as well go naked!" Gohan growled, stumbling out of his closet and kicking at a random pile of clothes. Folding his arms, he glared around the now messy bedroom. "Although…I don't think the girls would appreciate it if I just turned up in my birthday suit. They'd probably freak out and beat the living snot out of me…"
After fruitless efforts of trying to find his jacket inside of his closet, he decided looking through the other piles he had created instead. Plunging his hands through the small hills of material, he began pulling out one top after another, ignoring everything else. It was once he was through with the first two piles he gave up, looking up towards his lounge room and letting out a sigh of annoyance and disappointment. It was only then when he realized he left his jacket hanging on the couch's back, prepped and ready for the night.
Slapping himself in the head for being so stupid, Gohan pulled himself to his feet and, after kicking his clothes into the closet and reminding himself to clean up the mess later, proceeded to his lounge room. Grabbing his jacket and putting it into his mouth, he reached down and began slipping on his sandals. Hopping on one foot towards the door as he secured the last sandal, he took the jacket out of his mouth and slipped it on.
Checking to make sure he had his pass, keys and money, Gohan stepped out of his apartment and locked it up. Making sure he secured his keys in his pocket, the onyx haired Jonin punched the air in front of him excitedly, skipping on the spot with his hands held up as if he were preparing himself for a fight. However, he was merely loosening his muscles and body for the main events, and once he had, the young man then took off on a quick-paced run down the road. Next stop, Konoha's Hot-Spring Resort!
The Jonin ran down streets, passing pedestrians and buildings alike. Gohan made this run like an obstacle course, expertly weaving through crowds, sliding under obstacles moving or were lying across his route, or leaping over great distances like a super-professional athlete. Even though Konoha was his hometown and the people were finally beginning to treat him right for all the things he has done for it, he still pulled out some old fast ones on the Hidden Village's soil. He treated this run like a military course, commando-rolling here and there, and running over benches. Some of the villager's Gohan passed questioned this young man's rush and why he was doing his best to avoid everything. As always, Gohan had a very good reason to be in a rush, and as per his personality, treated every opportunity of endurance, speed, strength and skill as a test of his abilities.
Within five minutes, he arrived, and was standing beneath the shadowing presence of a Shinto shrine archway. Having not even broken a sweat, the young male smiled up at the wooden arch, and read the name of the institute beyond it's gate and up the stone steps into the fancy bathhouse.
Konohagakure Hot-Spring Resort
"Well that's just stating the obvious…" the Jonin thought, his sensitive nose catching a whiff of tub salt herbs wafting through the breeze from the structure. Smiling, Gohan glanced around the area, awing at its natural beauty and befitting design traits.
The hot-spring resort was simply blossoming with foliage, which grew in and out of the area as if this place was a part of the natural wilderness itself. Pink cherry trees flowered in the breeze, shedding their petals majestically. The winds blew these touches of blossom through bamboo emplacements like a flowing stream, accompanied by shrubs and plant life that was just spewing out a scent which Gohan found extraordinarily pleasant. Bonsai bushes, along with small shrines and bird-houses, with a lovely lake and a miniature river flowing up front, caught the shinobi's keen eye. The building spoke for itself too, with a painted red and green roof to suit the surroundings, and every so often a golden warrior and goddess statue, and decorative framework. Everything was fitted in accordance with the feng shui law.
"This place is amazing," Gohan exclaimed, hands on his hips as he looked over the place again and again. "Wow! Now I can see why this hot-spring is so pricy. It's paradise!"
"Just wait till you see what's inside!" a voice from behind spoke up, catching Gohan's attention in a jumping manner. Blinking, he turned around, and immediately came face to face with the ocean blue eyes of Ino Yamanaka. The young woman smiled friendlily at the Jonin and waved, having come up to within six feet of him in an attempt to surprise him.
Well, it definitely worked.
"Whoa! Ino-chan! Good afternoon!" Gohan exclaimed, voice holding that hint of nervousness that indicated his unanticipated arrival of his early invite.
"Good afternoon to you to, Gohan-kun," Ino replied in a very friendly tone of voice. She stepped forward a bit more, running a hand through her hair and gesturing towards the shinobi suggestively. "What do you think of my outfit? Is it okay, hmm?"
It was then, Gohan got a good look of the outfit his fellow ninja was wearing, and saw her donned in a purple tube-top of Chinese light and dark lining tone, and design, with a black turtle-neck worn underneath, which was closely followed up by a purple matching skirt, bicycle shorts and sandals. She also wore purple lace-wing, and had her hair done up into a braided pony-tail, matching her outfit. With the amount of skin to be seen, the outfit was very revealing, and Gohan couldn't help but linger over her body for several seconds longer before looking back up. Ino's gaze failed to falter from her lustful and suggesting visage.
"It's great, Ino!" Gohan exclaimed, starting to feel a little bit hot under his headband. "It suits you very well! It really high-lights your beauty, and goes wonderfully with your eyes and hair …" he added while pointing to her pale-blonde locks.
"That certainly did the trick!" Ino said in her head in a burst of delight. "Well, I'm glad you like it Gohan-kun. And I must say, you look very dashing in that outfit!" The blonde complimented, stepping forward and playing with the corner of the jacket's fur-collar. With every action she initiated, she did not make without a sexy stride. The proximity at which she set herself with Gohan allowed her to feel the heat or arousal emitted off of him. "I've never seen you in this outfit before. It really compliments your sexy body."
Clearing his throat, the spiky haired Jonin stepped back a bit, so to get some air. "Well umm… (cough)…thanks very much, Ino-chan! You know how it is. I was saving this one for a special occasion, and since that occasion has come along, it would have been bold for me to wear my ninja gear to a resort like this… with…eh…you…" He said the last parts with a bit of hesitation, because he could have sworn Ino had stepped up even closer to him. Gohan could now feel her breath tickling his nose, that sweet scent of her perfume filling his nostrils.
"Mmm-hm…" Ino moaned appreciatively, while gazing into his deep sapphire eyes. "Well…however you dress doesn't matter that much to me, Gohan-kun. I think you're still very sexy…"
Gohan gulped nervously, feeling a fine sheen of red streak over his cheeks as he felt Ino inch a little closer to his face. He stammered, attempting to stagger back, but found himself rooted to the spot, captivated in the woman's eyes. With every slow breath he drew, Ino drew ever closer.
"I…I think you're… beautiful too…Ino…"
Just as Ino's nose was beginning to brush up against his, the two of them suddenly and unexpectedly became aware of a familiar presence. The stammered, nervous words of that certain someone came breaking through the air, cutting them off from this little moment.
"N-Gohan-kun?"
Jumping, Gohan glanced to his right, where he saw Hinata Hyuuga standing there with her hands held to her chin and laced together, a very concerned look on her face as she gazed at the two of them. Ino backed away, surprised as well as she stared at the purple haired girl standing a couple meters out from them. Silence filled the air for several seconds. Once that time had passed, common sense and awareness once again filled their minds, and both Gohan and Ino were able to respond to the newcomer's appearance.
Gohan, naïve as always, even at this age, grinned and waved towards the Hyuuga, approaching her in his greeting. "Afternoon, Hinata-chan! I'm glad you were able to make it!" Ino glanced at the young male's back in surprise, blinking in absolute bewilderment.
"N-Gohan invited her as well?!" she shouted in her head. Furrowing her brow, she clicked her fingers through the air and bit down on her bottom lip. "Darn it! I should have known! Now that he's invited her, my efforts to seduce Gohan have just gotten far more complicated!" Ino was well aware of Hinata's attraction towards the onyx haired shinobi, and also knew that she was too shy to make a move on him. However, Hinata has always been a big obstacle for girls who wanted to get their hands on Gohan, as the Jonin still held strong feelings for his friends equally, including the Hyuuga girl.
Ino placed her hands on her hips and smirked at the pair as they greeted each other. "He's always been kind. I see no reason to worry. I'll get to him the next time he's alone in the hot-springs!"
"It's so good to see you, Hinata-chan!" Gohan exclaimed as he smiled down at his friend, seeing her smile back and blush as he came within four feet of her. Timid as always in his presence, she backed away slightly. "So, are you ready to go in?"
She nodded. "Y-Yes…" It was then her eye-sight reset themselves on Ino standing in background, behind Gohan. That friendly smile and her dress of occasion only meant one thing to Hinata, to which she lowered her head slightly and looked back towards Gohan, hands still cupped together. "I…I didn't know you were inviting Ino as well, Gohan-kun…"
"Hmm…" Gohan glanced behind him at the designated girl, then back towards Hinata. Noting the glances the two girls were sharing with each other, the young male then grinned and waved. "Oh! Sorry, Hinata-chan! I forgot to tell you that I was also inviting Ino-chan to the hot-springs! I wanted to invite both of you so that we could all spend time together and stuff! I also knew you girls would also like to talk to each other, so…heh…I hope that's okay with you!"
"Oh…that's okay, Gohan-kun!" Hinata exclaimed happily, understanding the Jonin's good intentions. "It's fine with me! A-As long as we all have a good time."
Gohan smiled in relief. "That's great…" It was then, the young ninja became aware of the outfit the purple haired girl was wearing, and took a brief moment to look it over. As expected, Hinata was looking gorgeous this afternoon, her hair let out and free from her pony-tail, going wonderful with her outfit. The clothes she chose to wear tonight consisted of a light, purple kimono top with long sleeves, white-linings and black buttons. The entire top was of Chinese design, and underneath it, she wore a black t-shirt. Her stomach cleavage could be seen under her tops, with a red sash tied around her waist, holding up a light purple kimono dress. Both top and bottom pieces were matching, and with her figure, it suited her wonderfully.
"Wow…that's a really nice outfit you're wearing, Hinata," Gohan pointed out.
"R-Really," Hinata replied, her cheeks flushing extraordinarily. She twiddled her fingers together nervously. "T-Thank you, Gohan-kun! I knew you would like it…so I decided to wear it tonight…"
"Well…I do like it, Hinata-chan!" Gohan stated, nodding to her. "You look very beautiful in it…"
Hinata gasped and looked up at him, her cheeks baring a full blown pink texture as she looked him straight in the eyes. "H-he thinks I look beautiful?"
"Hey there, Gohan!" another voice suddenly sounded, breaking the moment. Gohan and Hinata glanced in the direction it came from, and saw Ten-Ten running up to them. Skidding to a stop right before the onyx haired Jonin, she grinned up at Gohan and thumbed at her chest in a declarative manner. "Well! I'm here! So when does the fun start?!"
"Soon, Ten-Ten-chan!" Gohan stated. "We're just waiting on, one more person to arrive!"
Ino furrowed her brow at the arrival of Team Guy's number shuriken-jitsu master, and counted yet another obstacle in her mind. "Ten-Ten too? Hmm? Guess that only leaves forehead girl I presume. Gohan would have certainly asked her out first…seeing as that he likes her a lot…"
Hinata hunched her shoulders a bit, setting her sights on the young, brown haired ninja that was now engaging in conversation with her love interest. "Gohan-kun invited Ten-Ten as well? Oh no. How am I going to tell him how I feel when the other girls are hanging around him?"
"Nice outfit, Gohan!" Ten-Ten exclaimed, leaning over a bit to take a look at his jacket. The fur looked so warm from where she was standing, and could imagine its very quality against her own skin. "I didn't know you wore stuff like this? This looks really expensive."
"You'd be shocked to find out how much I earned in my mission pay after taking down three Legendary Swordsmen and Madara Uchiha," Gohan replied, rubbing the back of his head. Those final battles he, Sasuke and Sakura had against the remaining members of Akatsuki weren't pleasant, but in order to move onto the future, you had to live with your past. He just shook his head, still smiling at the brown haired kunoichi. "Of course…my inheritance from my parents should be enough to last a life time. I mean…look at Sasuke. His inheritance is in the millions!"
"Does it matter though?" Ten-Ten asked, straightening herself and grinning at the onyx haired Jonin. "It's his money! Let him blow it off however he likes! You, on the other hand, earned that money through all your hard work and heroics, stud!" She jabbed him in the chest, her fist thudding what she felt was a brick wall.
"Wowza!"Ten-Ten thought in surprise when she felt the young male's hard peg through his shirt. "How much does Gohan bench to get his body this hard? Ooh…can't wait to see what he looks like underneath these clothes!"
"Heh…I guess I did," Gohan naively replied, while looking over the outfit Ten-Ten chose to wear tonight. As per her style she was wearing a white t-shirt that was of Chinese design, with long sleeves with pink linings. Around her waist she wore a light green sash, and matching red dress with blue sandals. Her hair was done up as usual, but that didn't make her look any less beautiful in Gohan's eyes. He was just thrilled to have her along.
Not too long since Ten-Ten had arrived, Sakura showed up. As she had expected, Gohan had invited the other girls along as well, and she felt a little tinge of jealousy as he watched him laugh along with Ino and Ten-Ten at a short, funny story that they had experienced years back. His attention towards them was intangible, and the outfits the girls were wearing definitely drew Gohan's attention toward them. For now, he was caught in their nets. However, if her past quests of going after Sasuke's affections (which inevitably failed) served her right today, then she was certainly not going to give up on the one man she truly felt for, so easily. If she had to, she would most certainly knock out all the other girls to get to the spiky haired Jonin herself, and have her way with him.
Smirking, Sakura closed the remaining distance between her and the hot spring group, and managed to sneak up behind Gohan to tap him on the shoulder with her fist. The Jonin's senses immediately perked up at the feeling, recognizing the density and chakra emitted from the limb in question. He sweated nervously, turning around and, at the same time, closing the eye on the side he directed towards the said person. Right as always, he saw Sakura smirking up at him, right fist held up and fingers creaking as she flexed her hand. Gohan internally gulped, and gave off a friendly, yet clearly nervous smile.
"S-Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed. The kunoichi nodded to him, ignoring the stares she received from the other girls.
"Good afternoon, Gohan-kun!" she replied, also giving the boy a happy smile. "Why so tense? It's just me you dope!"
"Y-Yes! Of course!" Gohan spun around quickly, fast enough to send dust flying into the air. His arms and legs snapped to attention, and he bowed to the woman, eyes closed and attention to manners detail set on full overdrive. About a couple of years ago, Sakura had made a habit of warning the spiky haired ninja before she caved his face in, the first indication being her fist tapping against his shoulder, and second being the cracking of knuckles. Thankfully, she was in a good mood, and was more then happy to see her best friend. She also hadn't reached the second indication yet.
"I am so happy that you were able to come tonight, Sakura-chan! This means so much to me!" He wouldn't lie, and Sakura knew this. He looked up at her, smiling. "You're a really good friend!" he ducked his head again, fearful of any sudden reactions. In full honesty, Gohan would bare his soul to her and become the undying man she always wanted if that was her wish. Sakura had to laugh at this.
She bent over as well, looking into his face as he remained in his bow position. The pink haired Jonin giggled in amusement at his actions, and placed her fists on her hips, observing the sweat drip down the sides of his face and his body trembling in fear.
"You don't need to worry, Gohan-kun!" Sakura exclaimed, smiling brightly. "I'm not going to hit you! I thought we'd passed that?"
"Uhh…right," the boy replied, straightening and rubbing the back of his head in a sign of embarrassment. "A month or so ago…before that, it was stitches, intensive care and a freezer's worth of icepacks…" He was thankful she had stopped.
"Geez. You can stand up to the Six Ways of Pain, yet you cower under a woman? What is it with the male personality strand today?"
"Not all men are as tough as me! That's the thing!" Gohan stated, thumbing at his chest while grinning handsomely at the young woman. "I'm the best there is! Believe it!" Sakura blushed at his grin, but scoffed at his proclamation.
"Idiot!" she replied, thumping him in the chest, and experiencing the same thing Ten-Ten had when doing so, only her reaction was much more immense.
"God dammit! That's a hard chest!" she thought, a dirty smile crossing her lips.
"I bet his shaft is much harder…"
"Who-osha…" Sakura slowly exclaimed, agreeing with her much dirtier side.
"You can just imagine it can't you?"
"Let's not get too carried away now…"
Tonight, Sakura had decided to wear a red t-shirt with ninja mesh for sleeves, and a light brown vest of Chinese design. Her mid-drift showed off nicely, and below she wore a pair of blue, figure-hugging jeans, that didn't leave much to the imagination. Gohan looked her over in her chosen outfit and blushed, but looked away and up towards the sky to avoid the girl's curious eyes. Scratching his left cheek, the young male chuckled and glanced down at her, while keeping his flushed face out of view.
Sakura glanced over at the other girls, seeing Ten-Ten smiling towards her with a nod of greeting, Hinata waving to her, and Ino smirking in her direction. The pink haired kunoichi returned each of their greetings in kind, but kept her eyes over Ino for a moment longer.
"What's up, Ino-pig?" she asked.
"Not much, forehead. I see you had the courage to come after all!" the blonde replied, grinning evilly.
"Couldn't resist," Sakura shrugged.
"Would you two give it a rest?" Ten-Ten asked, looking between the smirking pair. "We're all here to enjoy ourselves. So why don't we cut the insults and name calling, and head on inside?!"
"Y-Yes. A-After all, it was Gohan-kun who invited us all," Hinata stated, standing beside Ten-Ten in support. "We must be gracious guests, and thank him for this wonderful opportunity he has given us to spend time together."
"Hm…sure," Ino exclaimed, glancing over at the spiky onyx haired head standing not too far away from them. "What now, Gohan-kun?"
"What now…hmm…" Gohan thought, rubbing his chin in thought. It took him several seconds for him to come up with a suitable answer, and once he did, grinned and walked over to the four girls, calling them around so that they all stood in front of him. Ino and Sakura, still opposing each other on this silent matter, took up flanks on opposite sides of the formation. Gohan put his hand behind him, smiling. "I think…that we should all go in, and have a good time. What do my ladies of this fine afternoon think?" he asked, while leaning over and holding out four different flowers held between his finger-tips.
All four girls looked down at the four corresponding flowers, and were very surprised at the coloration. The four flowers Gohan was holding were all roses, one of them red, another was pink, with a third light blue, and another one purple. Each rose was as unique to the next, and the Jonin smiled handsomely at all four of them as he handed them their flowers.
"As sweet smelling as the rose, and simply blooming with natural beauty, you girls all look wonderful tonight, and I hope you enjoy yourselves!"
"Oh…thank you very much, Gohan-kun," Hinata exclaimed, taking her purple rose and clutching it to her like it was the best gift the spiky haired Jonin had ever given her. She beamed at him, eyes sparkling. "It's very beautiful!"
"My goodness! Where did you get these from, Gohan?" Sakura asked, looking down at the pink rose in awe, and then back up at the handsome shinobi.
"I certainly didn't sell you these…wow," Ino also exclaimed.
"I picked them out especially. I found each one of them on one of my recent missions," Gohan stated, pointing out each one, "and for some reason, all I could think of, was you four…"
"Well, they're certainly lovely, Gohan! Thank you!" Ten-Ten exclaimed.
"Yes, thank you, Gohan-kun!" Sakura exclaimed, walking up to him and kissing him lightly on the cheek. Ino scowled at the girl, whereas Hinata looked away with a light blush on her face. Gohan just chuckled, backing away a bit while smiling his appreciation towards Sakura's show of thanks.
"So!" he spun on his heel, moving out a bit so that he could look at all of the kunoichi present. "Have you all got your tickets?!" Each woman gave him a firm nod, and each of them held up their laminated passes, taking them out of rather extraordinary places. Ino took her pass out from in front of her tube-top, Ten-Ten took it out of her hair in Houdini style, and Hinata removed it from her pouch behind her, and Sakura from her jean's pocket. Gohan smirked, holding up his and gesturing in the direction of the bathhouse. "Well then, let's go!"