lostmoonchild: Thanks for the review! If anybody gets confused about something then go ahead and ask and I'll explain it the best I can. I have to work the whole weekend and won't be back until Monday so if anybody has any questions then you can probably expect an answer Monday afternoon. So here's the chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Chapter Thirty One
This was probably by far the strangest thing she had ever seen in her entire life. Akina shivered as she watched the small six-year-old laugh with excitement as the Bijuu playfully tapped the ground in front of her. "This is normal?" Akina asked softly.
"She's a pretty happy kid." Naruto replied as he watched Nibi pick Hisoka up with one of its tails and hold her upside down. "Okay, Hi-chan, start kicking out chakra."
Hisoka groaned softly as she stared at her father, giggling as Nibi pretended to drop her. "I don't wanna though!" Hisoka giggled. "We're playing."
"You can play when you're not supposed to be back at the hospital." Naruto told her. "Nibi, put her down please so she can kick out some chakra. Her body's still too young to be able to handle nine Bijuu chakras in one go."
Nibi growled softly as it set the girl down before nuzzling the girl's stomach. "My tummy doesn't hurt anymore." Hisoka told the Bijuu.
"Wow. That one's pretty." Kenji said in amazement. "Can I pet it?"
"Kenji!" Akina scolded.
Hisoka beamed as she looked at them before answering, "Ni-chan doesn't mind."
Kenji carefully went over to the Bijuu and reached out, nearly jumping when the cat demon pressed its nose against his hand. "I don't believe it." Akina said softly before she looked at Naruto. "What in the world is she?"
Naruto was silent as he watched his daughter and Kenji before answering, "She's my daughter. So you know, I'm about as weird."
"Clearly you didn't know my ex."
"You were married?"
Akina laughed softly as she watched the children before touching the stump of her arm. "He left us after the accident. I had been on duty when the Akatsuki attacked, stationed near the entrance when there was this explosion. When I woke up, I was in the hospital and down one limb. Not long after, I was down a husband." Akina suddenly looked embarrassed. "I'm not complaining, mind you. The only good thing that came out of my marriage was Kenji and the good thing that came out of my accident was that Lord Kazekage let me keep my job as a medic."
"Wow. How in the world do you manage? I mean- Hisoka, don't make anything bigger than you!"
Hisoka laughed as she began spinning around, giggling as Yonbi and Shichibi began messing with her chakra creatures. "You mean what?" Akina pressed.
Naruto grinned slightly before answering, "I have no idea what in the hell I'm doing some days."
"Well, that's parenting. Kenji! I swear I'm going to ground your butt if I catch you trying to take off on a demon!"
Kenji grinned in response before carefully inspecting Rokubi. "How does he avoid getting dry?" Kenji questioned.
"Slime… I think. San-kun hates it here cause it's so dry."
"Wow."
"Yeah."
Akina brushed her hair from her eyes before saying softly, "When I think about demons, child friendly isn't exactly what comes to mind."
Naruto nodded slightly before answering, "Kyuubi wasn't exactly child friendly with me. I think they just love Hisoka without really knowing her."
"Are demons really capable of loving anybody?"
"Keep this one. I like her." Kyuubi commented. "She's already mother material and was ditched by that one mate of hers so you won't have to worry about any competition."
I'm not going to go after a mom that got ditched by her husband!
"For all you know, she could be eager to get the cobwebs-"
I am so not hearing this! Naruto rubbed his head with his hands, stopping when he felt a pair of small hands pull on his jacket. "Are you okay, Daddy?" Hisoka asked worriedly.
Naruto forced a smile before answering, "I'm fine, honey. Are you ready to go back to town?"
Hisoka nodded slightly and smiled as he picked her up. "I feel a lot better now. I think they settled down." Hisoka reported.
"We'll have Hinata-chan check."
"M'kay."
There was just something about watching a father and daughter interact with each other. Akina smiled softly as she watched the two, feeling herself drawn to the blonde. "Are you okay, Mom? You look kinda weird." Kenji stated simply.
"I'm fine. Don't worry so much about me, kiddo, or you'll go gray long before your time."
"Like Hi-chan's?" Kenji teased.
"My hair's not turning gray! Only a little bit's turning white."
"Not helping your discussion, Hi-Hi." Naruto laughed.
Hisoka puffed her cheeks out and grinned slightly at them. "Silly girl." Akina laughed. "If you hold on, I'll teach you how to argue with guys and actually win."
Immediately the girl looked interested. If this was anything like what having two parents was like then it was something she liked. "Please no. She's already got some fairly strong female influences in her life." Naruto laughed.
"I'm going to want to check Hisoka over after that little rendezvous with the Bijuu just to make sure that nothing's been thrown out of whack."
"Sure." Naruto replied simply. "Hi-Hi, you listen to what Akina-san tells you to do. Got it?"
"I always do."
"She's actually pretty good considering the fact that her dad's a shinobi. I'm actually rather impressed how easy she's been. From what the other nurses say, she's a holy terror."
Naruto glanced at his daughter and saw that she wasn't even paying attention anymore. "Could you explain later? I mean, like after you get done checking my daughter over?" Naruto questioned.
For a moment Naruto thought that the woman looked slightly nervous. Then again, he couldn't really blame her seeing as he was fairly certain not many parents waited until later to find out why their kid was considered a holy terror. "Of course," she answered.
Naruto waited in the room with Hisoka, watching as Akina went over the girl's vitals. "How come you're so good when nurses tell you to do something?" Kenji questioned. "I don't even like getting checkups."
"It's always better not to make medics mad."
Naruto smiled faintly as he watched his daughter, taking mental notes about her behavior. He didn't think that she behaved even half as good for Sakura or Tsunade as she was for Akina. What in the world was so different about the woman? Deciding it was just something to ask later, Naruto followed Akina out of the room. "So why exactly is my daughter a holy terror?" Naruto questioned.
"Personally I don't believe it since she's nothing short of an angel to me but from what a few of the nurses say…" Akina fell silent not wanting to say.
"What?"
"They think there's something seriously wrong and I know the one medic she actually bit is convinced that your daughter's not human."
Naruto leaned against the wall, glancing back towards the room and seeing the two children playing some kind of game. "Does Gaara already know who it is?" Naruto questioned.
Akina shook her head slightly before replying, "I was going to make a report as soon as my shift ended. I'm scared for her, Naruto-san."
"Mate material! Damn it, you idiot, can't you see this woman's perfect?" Kyuubi shouted.
Can we think about something other than your libido? Naruto snapped back. "I'm not letting anybody hurt my daughter." Naruto told her. "I need to get her settled down for bed."
"Of course. Kenji, it's time to go home."
"Akina-san?"
"Yes?"
Naruto fidgeted slightly before asking, "If you're not doing anything Friday, would you like to go out to dinner? You know, for taking such excellent care of my daughter."
A blush formed on the woman's face as she nodded slightly, putting a hand on her son's back. "I'd love to." Akina replied. "Good night."
"Good night."
Naruto scratched the back of his head as he went into his daughter's room, seeing the interest in her eyes. She and Kenji had listened to their entire conversation and having somebody thinking she wasn't human was nothing new to her. "What did Akina-san have to say?" Hisoka questioned.
"That you're an angel to her and that you're a holy terror to everybody else." Naruto replied easily as he tossed the girl a pair of pajamas. "Wanna explain?"
Hisoka frowned slightly as she thought for a moment before answering, "I like her. She's really nice and I like how she makes me feel."
Kids were a good judge of character, containing a sixth sense that seemed to be lost as they grew older. To hear his daughter tell him that she liked somebody and that she liked how the person made her feel told him that Akina was indeed what he thought she was. "Oh yeah?" Naruto questioned. "So if I were to take her out to dinner, you wouldn't get mad?"
"No. I like her and Kenji. It'd be nice if we could see them a lot."
"You like her that much, huh?"
Hisoka nodded immediately before answering, "She looks at you like Sakura looks at Sai. I think she likes you."
Naruto kissed his daughter's forehead and smiled softly. "You're a funny kid." Naruto said softly. "Get ready for bed and I'll read you a story."
"Okay." Naruto watched as his daughter quickly went through her routines before nestling in bed. "Daddy?"
"Hmm?"
Gray eyes focused solely on him for a moment before she said, "I really wouldn't mind if Akina-san became my new momma."
"Even the kit realizes it!" Kyuubi cheered.
Will you stop already? Naruto demanded before sighing softly. "We'll see, honey. You can't make people feel certain ways."
"Why not?"
"That's just not how the heart works."
Hisoka was silent for a moment before she nodded slightly. "Do you love me?" Hisoka asked.
"You know I do. More than life itself."
"Even if I'm bad sometimes?"
"You're an Uzumaki. Causing hell's one thing we're good at. Your grandma used to cause hell and actually beat the snot outta people that made fun of her."
The girl smiled softly before snuggling against her father as he grabbed a book she had never seen before. "What's that one?" Hisoka questioned.
"This is something that Ero-sennin wrote long before he started writing those books that Kakashi reads." Naruto answered. "It's pretty good."
With a content sigh leaving her lips, Hisoka listened as Naruto began to read the book aloud to her knowing that this would quickly become one of her absolute favorite stories.
lostmoonchild: Personally I like the whole idea of Naruto reading Jiraiya's "Tale of a Gutsy Ninja" story to Hisoka and for Naruto to tell his daughter what he knows about his parents. While it doesn't make up for the lack of knowledge on Mishima's side of the family, it does help provide a sense of belonging. Okay, so I'm gonna run and we'll see you guys next week! Read and review!