Chapter 7: When Things Get Strange
A few days later, and the Festival was in full swing. The streets were packed, and various vendors and entertainers were set up, competing furiously for their audiences. All of the guests, and much of Konoha's own residents, were enjoying themselves. However, a certain Nara was not.
Shikamaru was not happy. He was tired, hungry, and wet from being pushing into the water trough by some little toe-rag. Who the hell thought that he would be good for this job?
More like, he thought darkly. No one else could be bothered dragging their asses to-
"Shikamaru, this is supposed to be entertainment for children. You look like you're about to murder someone," Asuma's voice cut into his thoughts, making him snap to attention. "Violently," he added as Shikamaru's face glared up at him, showing the teenager's full wrath.
"I don't even want to be here… this sucks…" He sighed, pulling off his soaked flak jacket and shivering in the cold breeze. "It's such a-"
"Drag? Come on, this is good practice…" Asuma smiled. This was so like him. Always complaining.
"For what?"
"I don't know… fatherhood?"
"Ummm… sensei?"
"Yes, Shikamaru?"
"No. Just… No."
Asuma laughed before seeing his cue to leave: the red-eyed, dark haired kunoichi that was standing at the gate, in a casual sundress, her forehead protector sitting around her slim waist. "Well, Shikamaru," he clapped the boy's shoulder and turned, waving at her. "That lovely woman over there wants my time today, so… Good luck." He started walking away and laughed as he heard Shikamaru's reply.
"I hate you!" The boy turned to deal with another screaming child, sighing. If they make me head of the clan, I am pulling the Naras out of this gig. This is a complete waste of time that I could be spending… sleeping.
About an hour later, and after Shikamaru had decided that the next kid to kick him received shuriken to the leg, he heard a child's voice cry out.
"WWAAAAAAAAAAAAH! It bit me, it bit me!"
He sighed and turned around, ready to deal with yet another parents' complaint, but instead heard a much younger, more feminine voice behind him.
"He didn't bite you, you just need to be gentle… that's it, wait for him to come to you…" Temari no Sabaku was in the middle of a petting zoo, teaching a child patience. Her voice, usually gruff and mocking was different, gentler than he knew her to be. She had a look of serenity on her face too… was she enjoying this torture?
She stood up and leant against the enclosure's fence, a small smirk on her face.
"What are you doing here?"
"Your job, it seems…" the smirk grew wider. "You're not doing a very good job on your own…"
"Well, it's such a drag doing a job like this…"
"Not to mention your face…"
"What, do I look like I want to kill someone?"
"No, Just your face in general…"
"Bitch."
She kicked him, sending him backwards… and into the water trough that he'd already spent enough time in today.
"You were saying?" She asked as he pulled himself out, swearing. "And mind your language around children."
"You… I… kill…" He struggled to find words. "I hate you," he finished, feeling somewhat lame.
Temari laughed. "Awww, that's not very nice," She teased. "You don't even know me."
He scowled before smirking. "Is this your way of saying that you want me to get to know you?"
"Maybe… but you putting it that way makes you look like you have a crush…"
He laughed, enjoying the easy bantering that, for once, wasn't about Choji being fat, or Ino not being fat…
"Anyway. You look like you could use a hand."
"Anything to relieve me of this boredom…"
She laughed, and turned to deal with the first of many screaming children.
"Stupid Granny…" Naruto grumbled as he shifted yet another pile of rock.
"Naruto, this is your own fault," Iruka chastised, fighting to keep the smile out of his voice and off his face. "Don't disrespect the Hokage."
It had been a long time since Naruto had been one of his students, but the familiarity of the situation made Iruka feel all warm inside. Naruto hadn't changed at all, not really. He was still the small, trouble-making kid that he loved.
Though Iruka had to admit, the Fourth was definitely more creative with her choice of punishments than the Third had been. Naruto's punishment was to rebuild and paint the lookout point before the last night of the festival, during which he was supposed to 'haunt', a special end of festival for the guests.
"Bushy-Brows helped make the mess, why am I the only one doing this?"
"Bu- Lee has other commitments and a separate punishment," Iruka had to bite down on a laugh.
"Awwwwww, like what?" Naruto stopped, and mopped his sweaty forehead.
"Get back to work, or she'll make your punishment more severe!"
Tsunade had been livid when she had discovered the damage to the lookout point. And she'd almost started breathing fire when she'd found out who had been the cause of the destruction.
"That post… was a memorial of the ANBU who have died in service…" She hissed, her face remarkably blank for someone sounding so angry.
The two gennin trembled in front of her. After some serious interrogation, the Hokage had finally determined who had been the cause of the destruction and had them brought before her where she had quietly and calmly informed them of the seriousness of the situation, every ounce of venom she stored in her body aimed at the two boys. Naruto had the suspicion that it was stored in her breasts, which were why they were so large, but he wasn't about to say it.
"You are both to blame for this, don't give me any excuses. You will be given separate punishments. Lee, you are not to do any training or fighting for the remainder of the festival."
"But Lady Tsu-"
"What?!"
"I'm running dojo activities for the event! I'm teaching children martial arts exercises! How can I do that if I cannot train?"
"… Your punishment then is this: You are not to speak to Gai for the next two days and you are not to wear the green jumpsuit, but traditional dojo wear. And if I hear a single word about "youth" then your punishment is void and you are in the hands of Ibiki."
Lee gulped, his face pale and his eyes bugging out more than usual. Behind Tsunade, Shizune was staring at her master, afraid of what was going to happen if Ibiki was to sink his claws into either of the boys.
"And Naruto…"
Oh Kami... What's she going to do to me?! She pretty much just stripped Bushy-Brows of his… Him-ness… What is she going to do to me?!
"Naruto… you can rebuild the monument. You do not participate in any festival activities and I've already informed Teuchi that neither him, nor Ayame are to serve you any ramen until it finished," She smiled an icy smile. "Good luck… Iruka will oversee you."
"I don't see how my punishment could get worse, Iruka-Sensei! She's stripped me of my only food!"
"You know you can eat things other than ramen..."
"But I want ramen!"
They say that going without food can wear down a person's mental state, and the stress of the last few days without his favourite food, as well as the stresses of… his entire life, Iruka guessed, caught up with Naruto and he started to sob, running to Iruka.
"I ca-can't take it! I don't wanna do this anymore, dattebayo! I just want my friend and I want things to go back to n-normal!" he clutched the surprised chunnin's flak jacket and continued to cry.
"Na-Naruto! It's okay… It's okay…" He held the shaking gennin close and comforted him.
"Again! Come at me again!" Neji ordered, bringing his hands up in the defensive stance of the Gentle Fist technique. He and Tenten were sparring, both determined to become Chunnin next time.
"Haaaaaah!" Tenten ran at him, iron bar in her hands.
"Rotation!" The boy became a blur as he span deflecting her attacks smoothly.
She hissed in frustration, and disappeared.
Neji stopped spinning and looked around for her. "Byakugan!"
"What do you like about her?"
"Have you kissed her?"
"When is the wedding? Gai-Sensei will want to prepare a speech…"
Neji hissed in frustration. Damn them…
Tenten suddenly appeared beside him, bar flying to connect with his shoulder. Faster than lightening he dodged, flipping back and summoning chakra to his hands.
Tenten chased, her bar flying, and her face wild. She looked like a true kunoichi…
"Have you kissed her?.. Have you kissed her?.. Have you kissed-"
DAMNIT!
He snapped back into the fighting mind as an iron bar cracked him over the head.
Ow… what…?
He fell back onto the ground, groaning in pain.
"… Ji… Neji… NEJI! Are you alright?! Why didn't you dodge?!"
"Ugh…" He shifted a little, but everything hurt.
"Neji, say something, please!"
"…"
"Neji, are you-"
"Why are we friends?" He sat up a little, forcing the pain from his mind.
"…What? N-neji… you… what do you mean? Don't you want to be my friend?"
"…No... I want-" He was cut off as Tenten hit him, tears falling from her eyes.
"You JERK! Just leave me alone!" She ran off before he could say anything.
I want… us to be together… Tenten.
"…So she's not really mad at Shikamaru… She's just trying to make him play her game," Ino giggled to Choji. The two were sitting at an outside table at one of Ino's favourite cafés, Ino playing with a piece of low-fat strawberry cake and Choji happily munching on a chocolate flavoured mega-cake.
"And what kind of game would that be?" Choji asked, swallowing a glob of chocolate.
"I'm not sure… But everyone is going to be involved. Temari seems to know about Shikamaru's competitive side, so I'm assuming that's where she's going with this."
"Well, we are at a festival… Games would be good. I'm in…"
"Hey, Choji…" Ino looked at him with a face that suggested they were going to talk about his weight.
"Yes, Ino?"
"Do you mind if I try some of your cake?"
Choji was taken aback. He wasn't expecting to hear that from the girl with the low-fat cake.
"Um… S-sure…" He pushed the plate towards her.
She shakily picked up her fork and cut a tiny piece off, staring at it like it was going to attack her.
"It won't hurt you," Choji joked, chuckling as he took her hand with the fork and guided it to her mouth. She stared at him for a moment, and he quickly let go, blushing.
Ino swallowed. "Yum… If only it wouldn't make me fat," she sighed, eyeing the cake again, but this time with longing.
"Ino… You're not fat… And one piece of cake would not change that."
"Do you know how many calories are in that one piece?"
"Umm-"
"I would have to do so much training just to work it off! I'm on a diet, Cho! … Maybe you should be on one too!"
"Ino, I don't need to be on a diet-"
"What if you get sick? Or have heart problems?"
"The Akimichi family has no issues with-"
"You could die because of your weight!"
Choji was stumped. Ino had never used this argument before. Usually, she went on about being attractive to girls, but… This was new.
"And then, Shikamaru and I would have to go out alone, and visit your grave, and-"
Choji took Ino's shoulders and shook her gently, shutting her up.
"Ino. I swear to you, that I will go on a diet if I need to. However, our formation won't work properly if I do right now. Calm down."
She did, shrugging him off and turning back to her cake.
"Why do you care so much, anyway?" He asked her, taking a spoonful of his own.
"Well… You're one of my best friends, Cho… Lately we've all been going out on mission separately from each other, and I worry. That your heart will give out, while we're not there, or something…"
"Ino…" She worries about me?
"I don't know if I could bear it if you got hurt!"
He stared at her. Is it time? Am I supposed to tell her how I feel about her? Oh, God! Should I?
"Ino, I… I have to tell you something."
"Yeah, Choji?"
"I-" He was cut off as a dishevelled Tenten, came running past, sobbing quietly. Ino stood up.
"Choji, tell me later, I have to make sure she's okay… Is that alright?"
He nodded, feeling half relieved and half upset himself. "Sure."
"Thanks, Cho! You're one in a million!" She shouted back as she took off.
"Yep…" Choji sighed, as he fished out the money for their cake. "That's me…"
Kakashi watched all this from the balcony at Kurenai's apartment.
"It's safe to say that he couldn't tell her…" Asuma commented. "Again."
"Yep," Kakashi turned to face him, Kurenai and Iruka, who were sitting around the kitchen counter. "And I think Neji was being an idiot too," he added for Gai's benefit, as the green-clad man was standing in front of the mirror in the corner, practicing his "good-guy" pose.
"Is he? I did always tell him to be a gentleman around the ladies, but he doesn't like to listen to my youthful wisdom… Poor boy will get nowhere. Unlike Lee. He tells me he's only one courageous smile away from having Sakura admitting her feelings of true love and adoration for him."
Kurenai and Iruka were trying very hard not to laugh at Gai, and Kakashi was very grateful for his mask today.
Asuma decided to change the subject. "How are you feeling, Kakashi? It's around that time of year again…"
Kakashi was silent for a moment, remembering his minor breakdown from the other day.
"I'm fine. Honestly, running around after the gennin has left me little time to dwell on them."
The chunnin eyed him suspiciously. "You're lying."
"What?"
"There's blood on the cuff of your sleeve, and for the last few days you've been acting goofy to try and hide your feelings. Not to mention the fact that you've been using your right hand a lot more often lately, even though you're stronger with your left." Iruka stared at him, his arms crossed.
Leave it to the chunnin…
Kurenai and Asuma simply stared. They'd noticed the silly mood, but everything else had slipped past them.
"Some shinobi we are…" Asuma muttered.
Gai, of course, simply pretended he knew all along.
"Obvious, all of it. Never get past my youthful eyes!"
Kakashi was getting annoyed. "So what? I miss my team, and I miss my sensei. I am allowed to show my feelings sometimes! And if you know me so well, Umino, why couldn't you stop me BEFORE I did this?!" He ripped the glove off his left hand, revealing the jagged cut that was half healed, half infected.
Iruka was affronted. "I am not your keeper, Hatake, nor am I responsible for what happened. Don't take your feelings out on me like a child."
"Shut up, Iruka. You have no idea-"
Asuma stood up and took hold of Kakashi's arm. "Don't pick a fight with him, Kakashi. Just calm dow-"
Kakashi threw him off, just as Iruka's fist collided with his cheek.
There was a silence in the room as two bodies hit the floor, Asuma landing first, knocking over a vase of exotic flowers, then Kakashi, who sat up sullenly, rubbing his cheek.
"Are you done, Kakashi?" The chunnin stood over him, his arms folded as if he were speaking to one of his students.
"…"
"Kakashi…"
"Yes! I'm done… I'm sorry, Kurenai, I'll pay to replace the pot plant…"
"It's alright."
Gai and Kurenai cleaned up as Iruka took Kakashi back onto the balcony.
"Are you done, Kakashi? I swear, it's never been this hard for you, not since the first year…"
"Yes… I'm sorry…"
"You don't need to apologise. We all miss them too."
Obito… Rin… Minato-Sensei… What a disgrace to your names… God, why? You were right, Obito, I am acting like a brat…
He leant against the railing, staring down at the café where Choji still sat, deep in thought.
"Pretty soon… They're going to be the ones losing their team-mates. We've already lost one to Orochimaru… But soon they're going to be dying, on missions, from overwork, from battles…"
"Yes, but this lot is very strong. If anything, they'll beat the odds and live through everything that they're hit with… Naruto's almost famous for that, isn't he?" Iruka smiled at the jounin.
"Well… Yeah. You could be right," Kakashi settled, letting the chunnin's words comfort him.
"He started crying this morning."
"What?!"
"Yeah… He was doing his punishment, and it may have been because he wasn't allowed to eat ramen, and that helped trigger it… But he just… couldn't stop. He's under so much stress, with Sasuke gone, and little training from Jiraiya-Sama… He couldn't handle it."
"Wow… I never thought that Naruto would cave in like that," Kakashi was shocked.
"Yeah, it was a surprise for me, too. It's been, maybe… eight years? He was only just at the academy when that happened…"
"Well, Kakashi? There was something you wanted to talk to us about?" Kurenai called from inside.
The two went in, and Kakashi explained the details of the mission that he had been given by Tsunade.
"So… you're watching them."
"Like babysitters?"
"More like stalkers…" Iruka stated. "These guys are at the age where they start to… notice each other. And she wants you to watch? Their first crushes, first kisses, first-"
"Woah, woah! I do NOT want to think about my students doing that!" Kurenai cried. "They can stay my babies forever!"
"Um… Kurenai?" Asuma was quiet. "They're not your babies."
She went pink. "Oh… right."
Asuma continued. "If you really want, I can give you children, out of the kindness of my own heart-"
"No thank you!"
"We could start now-"
"Asuma!"
The two started laughing and Kakashi nudged Iruka.
"Fifty says that he'll get her pregnant."
"You're on."
"Another twenty that it'll be a girl."
"I'm not betting on that…"
"Damn."
"What are you betting on, boys…?" Kurenai sounded just a little bit dangerous.
"Ummmm… Nothing?"
"ANYWAY!" Gai looked a tad uncomfortable.
"Oh… Yeah…" Iruka looked back at Kakashi. "So you want us to help?"
"Yes… There's too many of them for me to be able to keep a close eye on, so I would like to request your help."
"Can we take bets? Because I think that Lee is going to make an ass of himself in front of Sakura."
"He will not, Asuma!"
"Oh yeah, greenie?"
Kakashi couldn't help but laugh. Even in the midst of all the chaos in his life, he was lucky to have friends like them.
Naruto had just finished fixing the lookout post, and was collapsed on the grass, panting.
"Yes… I did it…"
Hagane Kotetsu, who was his watcher, talked into the hidden microphone hidden in his sleeve. "He's done. Looks better than the old one."
"Message received and understood. Sending Teuchi up now."
Naruto, oblivious to all this, was trying to get up to go get the ramen. He found that he could barely move.
"No… Have to get… Ramen… Oh sweet ramen…"
He was clawing the grass, trying to pull himself down the hill.
Is he really in love with that ramen? Kotetsu thought. The Fifth must surely be vindictive then, if she decided this to be his punishment… Don't even want to know what that Rock Lee kid had to do…
When Naruto caught the whiff of ramen, he became excited, and suddenly sat up, weariness forgotten as he became alert like a fox sensing its next meal.
Kotetsu had only glimpsed Teuchi's smiling face for a moment, before a blur of orange almost knocked the noodleman over in a hug.
"YAY! Ramen! Ramen! My babyyyyyyy!"
Neji was running.
"Come on… Come on… Byakugan!"
He hadn't been able to find her.
Surely she could see that it was just the concussion that had made him sound like a blithering idiot. He couldn't remember what he'd said, she had made sure of that when she'd hit him again.
'You JERK! Just leave me alone!'
He stopped running. Maybe it would be better to let her calm down a little before saying anything, or attempting to apologise…
"Hey, Neji! What's up, man?"
He turned to see Kiba and Akamaru running down the path in training gear, followed closely by a kirigakure boy who looked close to their age.
"Have you seen Tenten anywhere?" Neji asked, trying to ignore the pain in his temples.
"Actually… Akamaru smelt her not too long ago," Kiba answered, placing his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. "He could also smell you… What did you do if you're looking for her now?"
Neji said nothing, he didn't want to embarrass the Hyuuga name in front of a Kiri boy…
"Humph. Never mind, then. You can tell me later," Kiba answered curtly. "This is Daman."
The boy in the blue vest nodded a hello, but Neji ignored him, not really all that interested in peoples' names at a time like this. "Where's Tenten?"
"Look, she went into the village, I think Ino's with her now."
"… If you see her before I do, could you tell her I'm sorry?"
"Hell no. I ain't fighting your battles for you."
"It's your fault this happened in the first place!"
"Well, maybe then you'll understand each other," the Kiri-nin spoke softly. "A little better, I mean…"
"Who asked you?!" Neji shoved the boy, running off.
Great… And I was so worried about making a good impression…
It was break time and Temari was sitting on the fence, watching Shikamaru put the deer in their smaller pen.
"So shadow-boy..." She crossed her legs, leaning back into the air and grinning softly at the gentle touch he used with the beasts.
"Yes?"
"How did you get stuck with the job?"
"Well, this job has been mine since I was in the academy… I guess no one thought to give it to someone else."
"Let me guess, 'it's such a drag'?"
"… Actually, not so much. This is one of the few things in the festival that I actually wouldn't mind doing. Everything else would involve way too much work. You know, with the planning, and the coordinating… All I have to make sure of is that the deer and the kids stay safe and happy. Then I can go home and sleep."
Temari laughed, covering her mouth.
"What?" He raised an eyebrow, confused.
"That is… so you!" she shrieked out in laughter.
He stared for a moment, before raising his fingers up in a familiar hand-sign. She jumped back to the safety of the other side of the fence, eyes wide, and it was his turn to laugh.
"H-hey! Not funny!"
"And exactly why are you so afraid of me?"
"I'm not!"
"Uh-huh." And with that, he turned away, starting to walk off.
"HEY! Where are you going?!" She called after him. "You still have another few hours!"
"Nah! Next shift is coming," he called back. "Come on, let's go! Unless you wanna help out the next guy, that is!"
Temari didn't even think about it, she simply followed, eager to see where he'd go.
As the two walked back through the village, she couldn't help but notice that a lot of people seemed to stare. She stole a glance at Shikamaru, trying to tell whether he would have noticed or not. He had a bored look on his face as he walked, half-staring up at the clouds. Then his eyes shifted down and met hers.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, of course. Why wouldn't I be?" Temari scoffed.
"Well, I dunno… Maybe it's the rapid changes of mood towards me, or even the fact that you're following me around at all. It's a little unnerving."
"How so?"
"For starters, I'm not sure if something I say or do is going to get me killed… I've seen you in action."
Temari couldn't help but smile at that. "And?"
"Second of all… I'm not that interesting."
"Not that interesting? Nara, you made a puppet show out of your friends at the Welcoming Feast, and you've certainly kept us all entertained. Gaara was telling us this morning about last night."
"Well, that wasn't me-"
"Besides that, you're a genius fighter and I'm longing for a rematch where I'm not actually your enemy."
He shrugged at that, and stopped, flinging his bag down and settling himself down onto the grass. Temari joined him, albeit more delicately.
The boy tilted his head up to the sky and started cloud-watching, silent.
Temari watched with him for a while, trying to emulate his calm mood. After about ten minutes though she started to fidget, unused to not hearing anything around her.
"It's so quiet…"
"Yeah, it was until you started yapping again," the Nara grinned. "Just go if you're that bored. No one said you had to hang out with me."
"But I wanted to."
An uncontrollable smile was forcing its way onto his face, for reasons that Shikamaru couldn't quite fathom.
"Fine… Go ahead and talk away if you want. Tell me about Suna."
As Temari talked, Shikamaru started zoning in and out as he watched her. She was really nice, for someone so brash… And even he could admit that she had a killer smile.