The Lotus Rock Lee

by AshleyKazekage

The tale of Setsuki begins here. Her life didn't begin quite so well, but upon making friendships her life was well on it's way to becoming great! She meets her best friend, and bonds with him easily. She is glad to have so many friends, and she even starts to fall in love, but refuses to show it at first. However Setsuki's life isn't as great as she thinks it really is..

21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

"Setsuki.. Setsuki wake up... SETSUKI!"
My eyes snap open and I jump almost 10 feet in the air and cling to the curtain with wide eyes. Two sets of laughter filled the room.
"That is not nice!" I hear Lee's voice. I blink and notice Lee in his hospital bed, Daisuke and Susumu standing beside it laughing.
"Hey! Hey look! Her boyfriend's already sticking up for her!" Susumu laughs. I frown and let go of the curtain. Lee's slight glare turns into a straight face and his cheeks turn slightly pink.
"B-boyfriend? N-no, I am afraid you are mistaken.." Lee says, scratching his cheek.
"Susumu! Daisuke!" I wail. "What are you doing here?"
"We came to visit our teammate, we heard what happened." Daisuke says.
"Yeah! You were up against Hoshigaki Kisame!" Susumu exclaims.
"And the legendary Uchiha Itachi!" Daisuke adds in.
"No not really.. I was just standing there.." I say, rubbing my arm.
"But Asuma-sensei told us you actually fought back!" Daisuke says.
"It was self defense! I didn't want to fight someone in their league! I'm no match!" I exclaim.
"Heh, you're right." Susumu scoffs. I frown again.
"No! Her bravery is something to be awed upon!" Daisuke exclaims. I blink.
"Ohh yeah? You're still in love with Setsuki hm?" Susumu asks, getting a slight smirk.
"Of course not! I'm way over her!" Daisuke gushes. I fold my arms.
"Sure~" Susumu drawls.
"Shut it!" Daisuke growls. Susumu's smirk grows and he puts his hands in his pockets.
"What'cha gonna do about it?" Susumu inquires, getting his cocky expression.
"I'll pound you're ass!" Daisuke exclaims, then goes to punch him. I lower my head in embarrassment as Susumu counterattacks, kicking Daisuke through the door.
"Guys.." I grumble.
"Hey! That hurt you bastard!" Daisuke shouts.
"Yeah? Want another go?" Susumu questions.
"Guys." I say a little louder. Daisuke stands up and runs back in the room and tackles Susumu and they begin a small fist fight.
"I'm gonna rip your fucking head off!" Daisuke shouts.
"Yeah? Do it!" Susumu shouts back.
"GUYS!" I shout as loud as I could, capturing their attention, they both look at me, frozen like statues. "Sheesh! This is a hospital." I mention. Daisuke lands his punch across Susumu's face quickly without moving any muscle except for his arm. Susumu growls. I lower my head more. I don't even want to see Lee's face at the moment. Then something came across my mind. "Hey, where's Komaru-sensei?" I ask, raising my head again. They both stand up and brush themselves off.
"Dunno." Daisuke replies.
"I think he's sick." Susumu says.
"Sick? That's unlike Komaru-sensei.." I mention.
"Everyone gets sick sometimes Setsuki." Susumu grumbles.
"Not me!" I exclaim, giving him a thumbs up. He sweatdrops.
"What's with that look?" Daisuke asks.
"Huh?" I look at their weirded out expressions, then look at Lee who was smiling.
"Doesn't Maito Gai do that pose?" Susumu asks.
"Yeah... it must be contagious.." Daisuke mutters. Then they both shiver.
"I'm not going near that freak then." Susumu says.
"Me either."
They both then blink at us. Both me and Lee are frowning at them. "Gai-sensei is not a freak!" Lee exclaims.
"He is a great sensei!" I imply.
"Yeah... lets just go." Daisuke says.
"No we can't we gotta go meet up with Kurenai-sensei as a squad!" Susumu exclaims.
"Kurenai?" I ask. "That sensei that's always around Asuma-sensei?" I ask. They both nod. "Why?"
"Because she's training us today." Daisuke says.
"Why can't we go be trained by Gai-sensei?" I ask.
"Coz he's not here." Susumu says.
"What? Where is he?" Lee questions, sitting up straight.
"Something about protecting Naruto or something." Daisuke says.
"Naruto? Protecting?" I ask. They both shrug. "You know, you two are hopeless. You know nothing."
"Psh, speak for yourself." Susumu grumbles. I fold my arms and stick my tongue out childishly.
"Anyway! Lets get going!" Daisuke says.
"I haven't been released from the hospital yet!" I exclaim. They both stare at me.
"So?" Daisuke asks.
"Uncle Takashi told me he'd come to get me this morning!" I say.
"Well it's morning, where is he?" Daisuke asks, looking around.
"I don't know. He's never late for anything except if something happens.." I say, trailing off in concern at the end of my sentence.
"Should we go look for him?" Daisuke asks.
"Yeah. Setsuki, you stay here." Susumu says.
"But I wanna come!" I whine.
"Stay here." Susumu growls, then they both run out. I sigh.
"Are you alright Setsuki-san?" Lee asks. I face him and nod.
"Yes, I'm okay. They'll find him." I reply. Lee nods.
"I wonder what they meant by protecting Naruto-kun." Lee ays.
"Hn.. wait! That means Gai-sensei would know where Naruto-kun is!" I mention.
"You are right!" Lee says. I sit down in the seat where I fell asleep and look at the Shogi board.
"Who won?" I ask, not remembering. Lee scratches his head for a minute thinking.
"Erm.. I do not know.." Lee replies.
"What do we report to Gai-sensei then?" I ask. Lee blinks.
"... We must finish the game!" Lee exclaims.
"Yes! T-"
"I move my Rook here! It takes out your king!" Lee exclaims, moving his Rook to defeat my king. I was speechless. "That means I win!" Lee exclaims then gets anime tears. "Gai-sensei will be so proud!"
"I challenge you to a rematch Lee!" I exclaim, pointing to him with determination. Lee blinks out of his victorious moment and grins at me, getting fire in his eyes.
"Challenge accepted!"

I sat there staring at the board, Lee had a drop of sweat fall down his cheek as he stares at the board under pressure. It was dead silent.
Lee's arm finally raises above the table ready to move a piece, however it was extremely hesitant. I had the perfect strategy planned in my head. I will win next turn, for sure. His shaky arm lowers and he lifts up his Bishop and moves it three squares diagonal, taking out my King. I blink.
"I did it! I won again!" Lee exclaims, getting anime tears again. If not for his injuries, I could picture him getting up and parading around. I lower my head in defeat. "Gai-sensei will be super proud now! I won two times in a row Setsuki-san! Two!"
"Yes! I know!" I whine. He blinks and settles down.
"Eh heh.. you will win next time for sure, Setsuki-san! You just need to believe in the power of youth and you will win!" He exclaims, giving me the thumbs up and the smile, his teeth even sparkle.
"I see.." I respond, then lower my head for a second in thought, then lift my head up with fire in my eyes. "Then I will believe in the power of youth!"
Our youthful moment was ruined by a pair of growling stomachs.. our stomachs. We both laugh and I look at the clock, noticing it's almost 1pm. "We did not get any breakfast!" Lee exclaims, annoyed.
"No wonder I'm so hungry.." I whine, rubbing my stomach.
"Wait, what about your uncle? He was supposed to be here this morning right?" Lee mentions. I blink.
"You're right! … Maybe he forgot about me.." I whine.
"I do not think your uncle would forget you Setsuki-san." Lee says in a soft tone.
"... He has before.." I mumble.
".. Really?"
I nod and begin telling him about that day.

[Flashback]

"Setsuki, I'll go to the shops, and I'll meet you at this bench in one hour, okay? Make sure you don't move from this spot, I don't want you getting lost." Takashi says.
My 7 year old self sits there on the bench grinning at him. "I promise I wont move!"
Takashi smiles. "That's a good girl." He says, then ruffles my hair, ruining my two pigtails. I smile at him, then he walks down the street, presumably to the shops which I didn't want to go to. People in big fruit costumes scare me..

An hour had passed and I was laying across the bench with my arms behind my head staring at the sky. 'He'll be here any minute now...'
I turn my head to the side to look for him.. no sign of him. I look back up at the sky, an orange glow could be seen in the distance.. as well as some dark clouds. I smile to myself. I love rain... but on the contrary, I hate storms. I sit up straight and look around again, a little frantically this time. I don't want to be stuck in a storm, especially not now because I don't know the way back to our house.

As another hour passed, the clouds rolled over more, though blue sky could still be seen. I didn't like this one bit.
"Uncle Takashi..!" I call, hoping for a response... nothing. I was beginning to get restless. "UNCLE TAKASHIIII?"

Another hour and I was panicking, what if it started to storm? I'd be trapped in it.. just the thought made me upset. I was scared now.
"Takashi..." I whine, looking around, the sky was a lot darker now, and the clouds were overhead now.. and it was colder. I curl up, hugging my knees. Then I felt something touch my bare arm. I look seeing a small bit of water.. I look up, it began to spit a few more drops here and there for a while before it became really heavy. I was getting drenched.. and really really cold. So cold in fact, I was shivering and could hear my own teeth chattering.
I bury my head in my arms to prevent my face getting wet.
"Setsuki? SETSUKI?"
I look up straight away seeing Uncle Takashi running around frantically. "Uncle Takashi!" I shout. He looks in my direction then runs over.
"Oh thank goodness!" He exclaims, then picks me up, holding me in his arms, he was drenched too. "Come on, lets get out of this rain before we get sick." He says then starts running home.

I was sick for a week afterwards.

[End Flashback]

"... That's pretty much it.."
".. Wow... I would never imagine forgetting their own family.. and you were scared of people in fruit costumes?" Lee asks.
"Don't judge me!" I whine.
"I-I never intended such a thing!" Lee exclaims, waving his hands innocently. I pout, not really believing him. "I am sorry! I did not mean to make you upset-"
"It's okay." I say, smiling slightly. The moment he said sorry made me happy.
By now voices could be heard outside. I decide to listen.
"Oh my! Come this way quickly!"
"Right!" I blink, that voice.. I face Lee, he had heard it too.
"Gai-sensei?" We both ask in unison. I walk to the door and peep out, seeing a nurse run past, followed by Gai-sensei carrying someone. I watch them for a second before they turn the corner at the end of the corridor.
"What is it?" Lee asks.
"I dunno, Gai-sensei has someone injured on his back." I answer, still staring at the corner.
"Who was it?"
"I don't know. I couldn't see their face." I reply.
"Oh."
"... Wait a minute.."
"What's wrong?"
"Gai-sensei's back!" I exclaim, facing Lee.
".. Yes, I noticed." Lee replies.

[Meanwhile]

"Hey look! There's Kurenai-sensei!" Daisuke exclaims, pointing to her.
"Oh yeah! Lets go!" Susumu says. They nod and run towards Kurenai and her squad.
"Ah, you two are fairly late." Kurenai mentions toward the duo.
"Eh heh.. sorry." Daisuke says, scratching the back of his head.
"Psh, and you complain when I'm late! This is what I call late!" Kiba exclaims.
"Do you wanna fight?" Daisuke growls.
"Heh, you wouldn't stand a chance!" Kiba scoffs.
"Oh yeah!" Daisuke raises his voice.
"U-uh.. K-Kiba-kun.." Hinata stutters, wanting to calm her teammate down.
"What's up Hinata? We can take 'em!" Kiba says overconfidently.
"Um.. n-no I don't want t-to fight.." Hinata shyly says.
"Huh? I wasn't talking about you Hinata, I meant Akamaru! Right pal?" Kiba says. Akamaru barks in agreement. Hinata sweatdrops.
"No. You two need to calm down. If you don't get along I wont train you. Any of you." Kurenai says.
"Alright! We'll get along!" Daisuke exclaims. Kiba grumbles something incoherent.
"Good." Kurenai says. Daisuke faces Susumu.
"Hey, what's up spacey head?" Daisuke inquires, poking Susumu's head.
"Huh?"
"Haha, you really were zoned out eh?" Daisuke sniggers.
"No, it's just.. something's bothering me." Susumu says.
"Like what?" Kurenai asks.
"I feel like we've forgotten to do something.." Susumu says.
"... Now that you mention it.." Daisuke says, beginning to think.
"I don't know why, but I think it's something important.." Susumu mentions.
"Hm, come to think of it, aren't there three of you?" Kurenai inquires. Both their eyes widen.
"We totally forgot about Setsuki!" Both Daisuke and Susumu exclaim.

[Back at the Hospital]

I was sitting at the table, playing a third game of Shogi with Lee.
"Power of youth.. power of youth.." I mutter repeatedly, staring at my three pieces left on the board. Lee had absolutely taken control of this game, it was like he planned this strategy way before we began playing. I knew I was going to lose. But I didn't want to. "Power of youth... power of youth.."
Lee stares at the board, at my three pieces, determining which one I will move.
'Wait.. if I move my Bishop there and take out his Pawn... I could then move my Lance and defeat his King!' I smile at my little ingenious plan. I pick up my Bishop, moving it to take out his Pawn.
"Hm. Good move Setsuki-san." Lee comments.
"Thanks." I reply. 'Now just to take out his King, then I've won!' I was getting excited now.
"Now, I will move my Knight here, I can take out your Lance." Lee says, doing as he says. I anime fall.
"No! No! I had a plan! Nooo.." I whine, laying on the floor. Lee blinks.
"Um... Setsuki-san.. you still have your King, so it is your turn.." He mentions. I quickly sit down in my seat again and take a deep breath and look over my two pieces.
'So I have my King, and my Bishop... maybe if I use the Bishop to... um... man this is impossible!' "Gah!" I complain.
"Huh? Are you alright?"
"You've won again!" I exclaim.
"No. It is your move still, you can still win." He says.
"How?" I ask, stating that I have no strategy.
"With the power of youth!" Lee exclaims with a fist.
"... Lee-san the power of youth isn't working for me!" I whine, getting anime tears.
"Do not be silly Setsuki-san! Of course it will! You just need to believe!" He exclaims.
"I will believe!" I exclaim, getting a fist.
"Believe what?" Gai-sensei asks, entering the room.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee exclaims. "I was just telling Setsuki-san about the power of youth!"
"Ah, excellent!" Gai-sensei says. "I see you have both been playing Shogi. Who has won?"
"Lee did.." I admit.
"Well this is our third game. Setsuki-san might win this time." Lee says. I move my Bishop across so that next move I could take his King out.. as long as he doesn't move it. I did this when Lee wasn't looking hoping he wouldn't pick up on it.
"Your turn Lee-san." I say, getting his attention. He looks at the board for a moment, Gai-sensei walks over with his hands on his hips watching. I get an overconfident smirk.
"I see! You moved your Bishop to protect your King! That was a clever move Setsuki-san." Lee says. I was speechless.
"How observant of you Lee!" Gai-sensei says. Lee gets an over-happy expression.
"Thank you Gai-sensei!" Lee says then faces the board again. He picks up his Knight and moves it to take out my Bishop, leaving my King wide open..
"Aww..." I whine.
"Hm hm." Gai-sensei chuckles in his throat.
I pointlessly move my King, and Lee takes it out on his next turn.
"So you've won three times in a row?" Gai-sensei asks.
"Yes! Yes I did Gai-sensei!" Lee answers excitedly. Gai closes his eyes for a moment, scratching his chin in thought, then gives Lee the thumbs up and shining smile.
"That's my youthful student, Lee! You're so clever, you make me so proud!" Gai-sensei exclaims. Lee gets anime tears.
"Thank you Gai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
"Gai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
"Gai-sensei!"
"AHEM!" We all face the door seeing a nurse standing with a tray of food. Me and Lee practically drooled at the sight. She began tapping her foot giving Gai-sensei a slight glare.
"Oh, uh please excuse us Madam." Gai-sensei says, giving her a respectful bow.
"Would you stop being so loud! This is a hospital! Not a game of baseball where you can shout as loud as you want! Other patients are trying to sleep!" She gushes. Gai-sensei falls to his hands and knees in a full bow.
"My apologies!" Gai-sensei cries. "I promise it will not happen again!"
"Hmph. Good." She snarls, then stops over to the table, stomping her feet so her heels could be heard a mile away. "What is this?" She questions, looking at the Shogi board occupying the entire space on the table.
"Sh-shogi ma'am.." I croak, becoming scared of her. She gives me a fierce look.
"What are you doing out of your room?" She harshly inquires.
"I-I uh wanted to come visit my friend..?" I answer. She huffs and slams the tray down on the table, making us all jump and the Shogi pieces fly everywhere.
"That is not an acceptable answer! There is no reason for you to leave your room AT ALL!" She snaps at me. By now I was shaking in fear.
"U-um, ma'am.." Lee begins, building up courage to speak. The nurse immediately turns to Lee, pointing at him.
"Don't you start young man! You are in no condition to do anything but lay there and get better! Got it?" She gushes. Lee looks down.
"Yes..." He mumbles.
"Good! Now! YOU! Return to your room this instant!" She literally screams at me. I scurry out of the room and into my room and jump in my bed and hide under the blankets. I could still hear her screams in Lee's room and after her fit of anger, she leaves the room. It was then quiet.. except for my stomach.

Five minutes later there was a knock on my door, but I was still hiding under my blankets.
"C-Come in.." I call. The door slides open and I swear I heard more than three pairs of feet walk in. What kind of crowd wants to annoy me now?