AN: I am still stuck here. I don't have any way to work on my serious stories so this one is getting attention. Also I'm hungry, I'm tired, it's hot..so I'm making Zi suffer.
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With the alteration in my schedule Lee was now getting a lot more training from our Tou-san. Seeing as for a good part of the late afternoon I was at the Hyuuga compound Lee was learning the more aggressive moves that would not be as effective for my body. At least not once I was grown, seeing as I was learning the Yue clan styles I didn't mind. That, and they were not going to make me take the kunoichi classes so..win. It wasn't like they really taught much, they were more to identify those who would have some form of talent in the arts. The last thing I was going to be good on was a seduction mission or the like because tiny chakra reserves and all. Wait. That probably was a good reason they were used for that..
Oh heck no.
Anyways, I wasn't in the academy yet but we were getting to start the next month when semester's rolled over.
My schedule was up with the sun for laps and training with Lee. Then we had Tai-chi in between to cool our muscles a bit before I worked on my agility before lunch. While I did that Lee worked on toughening up his reading and writing skills. Kanji and the like is hard but it seemed the same way my brain learned instead of English, it did just as easily with reading and writing. I had been a prodigy with that in my Before so to have kept it here made me a very happy girl. Also since we were not a noble clan, I didn't have to have perfection.
Chicken scrawl for the win! Well you know what I mean. I could be legible, that was the point.
Once lunch was over we would help out around the refinery as it was clan tradition. We couldn't do much at our age besides help clean but it was taking part. We'd get snacks and tea with our cousins there to do the same when it was break time and then back for my working on the Yue fight forms and Lee working on more of his Taijutsu. We'd get to do a few rough spars using our own forms to also learn how to react and counter each other so we weren't pigeonholed.
Now being a twin is interesting. Really. Really, interesting. Despite our basics being the same we had two different styles we were learning the sheer beginnings of that would eventually be our fighting styles. When we fought together though we could just tell what the other was going to do. So we didn't pay any attention to our parents and grandparent's yelling out corrections we just fought till last twin standing.
Once they realized we really would not listen to them of course they started using us to make bets. Our family is so weird.
Some days Lee would be the victor, some I would. We both had a stubborn streak as big as Orochimaru's ego so it was a last drop of sweat sort of victory. We'd lay there a quivering giggling useless pile of twins and eventually be shoo'd off to wash up. Someone would bring in food for us, and we'd get to spend time together. Our favorite thing to do was read.
Lee would sit beside me on our futon in whichever room we'd plop into after changing. Taking turns we'd read stories and make jokes with the windows wide open to get the fresh air. Sometimes, honestly, we'd end up napping.
Lee was an octopus. He'd be wrapped around all the blankets and the pillows and usually smothering me with them. I got used to it.
Apparently I snorted in my sleep.
Could be worse.
After that he would help me fix my hair and I would braid his, under my Kaa-san's watchful eyes as she'd teach us to do it for each other. Then Lee would go to the market or run errands with either Kaa-san or Grany or Gramps or any mix of them and I would be dropped off at the Hyuuga compound.
Chakra training was so weird. Every day we did something a little different and went until I nearly couldn't, Kou usually had his eyes activated for as long as he could. His brother Ko (and here I thought my famlily had originality issues!) was about eight years our senior and would often oversee us to make sure we didn't have trouble alongside his father. I had the feeling he was being trained for something.
We had gone from leaves to stones to moving droplets of water. Usually on one leg or with someone trying to disrupt our concentration. Today we were doing a new version, sort of a precursor to tree walking I guess. The Hyuuga had this ever so pretty koi pond and rock garden with various sized stones at intervals and posts set up to jump around and on. What was our chakra exercise?
We got to play tag.
Hyuuga tag is a crazy hilarious and sadistic game. I know they didn't like I was a natural at chakra control and so Kou was often training additional things, like his eyes, as we did this.
"For the first round.." Ko held up two stacks of paper with what looked like paper shurikens on them. "You will not hold still but constantly be jumping from rock to post and such, any hesitation and I am allowed to tag one of you as many times as I like.." Huh. Hyuuga's can do creepy evil grin. Noted. "At the end of the allotted time the one with the fewest 'hits' gets to go first as the aggressor in the next round."
Okay a thing about Hyuuga games? If they say aggressor that means one of you gets to hit the other. This is very very verrrryy bad. Kou is a year older than I am and if he's the aggressor he hits hard. If I am he's almost impossible to touch. His brother seems to like harassing me for taking up their precious time by making sure if anyone backs out of this arrangement eventually it's me. Fat chance jerk. Ko sucks. I like Kou a lot more.
"Here.." Kou hands over my stack and I flip through them. The paper is a bit thick, harder to be hit with upon impact. I recognized it though from the last time when we were both being chased by the older Ko. When he runs chakra through it the paper activates and sticks like very strong glue. It hurts to peel off. Like Ninja duct tape.
"Your ni-san is scary." I mutter to Kou, I know his brother can hear and see me but he'll pretend otherwise. Kou just sighs and I get the feeling he'd nod if it wouldn't cause him trouble.
"Watch out for the koi. They are evil."
Okay I can't help but stare at him and I know my mouth is wide open. "You have evil fish? Really?"
Kou wrinkles his nose -we have full on expression here people this is huge!- and nods. "They expect people to mean food. They shall splash. A lot."
Oh great. Wet slippery stones. The point of the chakra exercise is suddenly clear and I do not hide my whimpering. I have found as much as the Hyuuga don't react they do apparently find me funny as I scramble after Kou towards the stones, going for one on the opposite side of the suddenly massive seeming fake pond. Really, Hyuuga.
"So to clarify.." I call out to Kou as we get ready, and I double check the area as Kou has unfair home team advantage. "We are channeling chakra to not fall, to help us jump farther, and to make the paper stick to the other person? Isn't this waaaay beyond what we were doing the other day?" The other day we were just running from Ko and using chakra to help us stick to the ground when we pulled sudden turns.
Kou gives me a flat look. I know that look. It's the 'you make my life so hard and I don't know if I want to thank you or smother you in your sleep.' In other words, yeah Kou is totally my friend these days. I just nod back at him.
"Well wait.." I pause and yell over to Ko, loudly because I can and Kou has privately muttered to me at the last party the Akimichi had that he loves watching all the eavesdroppers flinch when I do that. "Does Kou-kun.." yes he is kun now. I got permission and everything from mr. Stoic mini bi**h face himself. "Get to use his eyes?"
"No." Ko is clearly doing this for something Kou did then. Far be it from me to not voice it since Kou can't.
"Kou-kun..what did you do? I mean the whole idea was originally to teach you control and using your eyes while you did it and this is so gonna be us failing in ways that all the people watching us are going to be laughing and..what did you do to annoy your ni-san?" My arms are waving for emphasis while I do this and the best part is I know how much my main branch friend thinks I am freaking hilarious and he gives me this long suffering look.
Ko of course has snapped out 'You are supposed to be training!' so he doesn't want Kou to talk about whatever it is. Hey I'm happy to be the round about interference for the poor younger sibling. I think I was the older one Before but here, that's Lee. And trust me over protective big brother Lee is going to be such a nightmare. I know that. So we younger kids have to stick together and Kou is kinda my only real non relative friend. Ten-ten totally doesn't count because I call her cousin and I don't care how much of a distance there is.
Kou nods ever so slightly. "I reported to Tou-san that I saw him with a girl."
Okay I can not miss this chance. I have a carefully blank face, one that makes Kou stiffen as no one else knows I get resting B**ch face when I'm about to be completely uncouth. Coming out of an adorable little purple beastie? Oh yes this is gonna be goooood. "Huh. Thought he liked guys."
I use Kou's choking to jump over and slap the first paper on his forehead, messing with his vision a little and chortle. "I didn't get the pretty hair!"
Yeah. Kou pummels me for that one with a harsh paper to the cheek. I do manage to not slip off the rocks and every time he lands one of the papers on me I hit him back with one, both of us have an arm out for balance so we can only do one at a time. And those fish? Totally evil. They have the rocks soaked within minutes as we are jumping and I don't think the Hyuuga compound has been this loud in ages unless someone was dying.
Because of course Ko is shouting at me and Kou and I are laughing our heads off when not yelping Ow and the fish are trying to bite our toes from ninja sandals and..
Eventually my chakra reserves run out and I end up in the pond. I yank Kou with me first though and my last pulse of chakra is I want them ALL to stick to him!
Spluttering and laughing and with a fish swimming off with my right hair ribbon I'm no doubt a sight. But Kou, standing up beside me stunned, with the last of both of our papers stuck all over him and perfect hair all messed up and water logged is so worth it.
You know what happens when you exhaust your chakra and adrenaline runs out?
Kou saves me from drowning as I suddenly pass out with my last awareness the water going over my face.
Worth it.