Ensui woke her up at dawn, just as he had promised. She had fallen asleep on her work, judging by the ink stain on her intact cheek. He had, though, decided to move her at one point, since she woke up laying on the couch, Hoshihi half-sprawled over her like an oversized teddy bear. He moved when she let him know she wanted to stand up, but his tail twitched unhappily, as if she had bothered him halfway through a comfy nap.
"Can you go fetch Hai-chan, please? I'll summon you both in half an hour, I want to take a shower and change first."
Hoshihi perked up and rolled on his feet. "No problem!"
The cat disappeared in a puff of smoke and she went upstairs, an amused smile on her lips. She heard Ensui getting busy in the kitchen, Sasuke next to him. Her mother still wasn't there, or she had just come and gone back to the hospital. That hypothesis was worrying for Hitomi – it meant Hinata's state was really serious.
She thought about it and other matters for a long time while showering and dressing. She had to send her battle kimono for repairs, since her sleeves had been torn in the Forest of Death. At least, she had several training outfits that would do the trick in the meantime. She used this opportunity to choose her outfit for the night's date with Lee. She didn't want to put on her best clothes – it might intimidate him if she appeared at her prettiest – but, thanks to Kurenai, she had a lot of options to make someone want to look at her.
When she went downstairs again, her still damp hair tied in a ponytail, her brother and mentor were at the table already. Her own breakfast was waiting for her in front of her seat. She settled, thanked them and started eating, taking pleasure in each mouthful. The food from home had a particular flavour, a unique identity that always made her feel better, safe. During the meal, she summoned Hai, who greeted her with enthusiasm. She was as cute as usual, between her big blue eyes and puffed-up pelt.
"So, Hai-chan, did you like your mission during the first stage of the exam?"
"I loved it! Will I do a lot of stuff like that with you, Lady Summoner?"
"We'll train so we can work well together, you and I. I also want to introduce you to my mom. She's an Illusion Mistress, it's a very important title here. It means she has truly mastered genjutsu."
"Woah! Your mom sounds so cool! Do you think she'll agree to work with me?"
"I've asked her about it in passing and she seemed intrigued by the idea. I have no talent whatsoever in genjutsu and I think she always wished I did, even if she never showed it."
When everyone was done with breakfast and Kakashi had taken Sasuke and informed Hitomi they wouldn't be back in the village before the tournament, Ensui decided it was time to pick up where they had left off during the night. He showed her a way to add chain reactions and countdowns to her seals, especially the ones she used for traps. They worked on it for four hours, sitting in the shade of the patio, while Hoshihi made Hai work on her defensive stances.
And finally Kurenai came home. She looked exhausted, her eyes red and puffy like she had cried, her hair a mess. She immediately rushed to her daughter when she saw her and hugged her like she hadn't seen her in years. Hitomi was happy to hug her back. She was so worried, and had so many questions… But this wasn't the time. When her mother let go of her, the girl led her to the kitchen and prepared a plate of the leftovers from the breakfast and the previous day's dinner, then she asked Hoshihi to fetch Asuma.
The man arrived a few minutes later, with the dizzy look of someone who had used a succession of Shunshin to make it as fast as possible where he was needed. Cute. From afar, without interfering, Hitomi watched for a few minutes as the man comforted her mother, trying not to hear the sweet words he was whispering into her ear – it was their intimacy. Still, she heard enough to learn that Hinata was alive. The worst was behind her, but she still wasn't awake. The medics said it was normal, but still…
With a worried sigh, the girl went back to the patio, where Ensui was waiting. She didn't need to say anything: just by looking at her, he understood she needed to move, needed a true tiredness to dig and coil in her muscles. He moved to the garden and gestured for her to join him. Slowly, he unsheathed his katana from its sheath adorned in the Nara clan colours – brown and dark green, deer and forest.
"I heard you were learning to infuse your blade with chakra. Show me what you can do with it."
With a nod, Hitomi focused. Slowly, too slowly for any fight, her tantō's blade got wrapped in water chakra, thinning it progressively until it was sharp. Only then did she make it rotate like the chain of a chainsaw. She couldn't yet add the teeth, and even the stage she was at wasn't good enough to be used in a real fight. It had taken her almost a minute to prepare her blade. An opponent could kill her a hundred times in that span of time.
As soon as she was ready, Ensui attacked. They exchanged a few passes, just enough for the man to gauge her exact level. He then adjusted his own and adopted the strength, speed and reaction time of a good Chūnin, superior enough that she couldn't wound him but still learn something. He dodged her blade and retaliated with a hit towards her knee that she only avoided by stepping backwards. Nobody liked that in a fight. It was like stepping forwards, but with a blindfold.
"Faster," he ordered in a voice that didn't leave any room for disobedience.
It was so natural for her to follow his instructions that she did as she was told, her blade whistling in the air a mere millimetre away from his arm. She took advantage of his dodge and adjustment to try to swipe his legs, but he pushed her away with his free hand on her shoulder, throwing her slightly off-balance. He took advantage of her loss of focus and put the edge of his blade on her shoulder, close enough to her neck for his victory to be clear.
"You progressed a lot, Hitomi. I still want to improve your legwork. Drink something first, though."
She laughed and obeyed once more, going back to the patio to wipe her face clean and empty a big glass of water. While he barely seemed affected by their spar, she was out of breath, covered in sweat from head to toe. Her cheeks had reddened from the effort, her eyes were gleaming, and a broad smile played on her lips when she didn't try to stay impassive. It was the reaction Ensui had been looking for, but this was only the beginning.
When she came back to the garden, he had swapped his katana, carefully sheathed, for an iron-shod bō . Hitomi had seen shinobi specialised in bōjutsu, but she hadn't thought for one moment that her master was trained to use that weapon. Was there even one thing in this world that he couldn't do? She hopped up and down on the grass with impatience, eager to discover the new idea he had decided to apply to her training regimen.
"Legwork, then. I want you to fight against a shadow clone around your level, with your sword only. I'll intervene from time to time… Your goal is to stay standing as long as possible."
The man straightened up, stuck the bō under one of his armpits and formed the Cross Hand Seal. A spark of chakra and a clone appeared next to him. He made it shorter and turned its weapon into a tantō so they would have the same reach. With a nod, he ordered his apprentice to attack. While she was fighting against the clone, she couldn't hit – the opposite was true as well, fortunately – Ensui was pacing around them, a thoughtful expression on his face. Soon, she forgot about him, focusing on his clone instead.
The first blow hit her in a blind spot, swiping her ankles hard. With an almost outraged exclamation, she collapsed and barely had the time to parry the blow the clone had tried to deal before rolling out of the way, looking as pissed as a cat that had just been showered. "Shishou!"
"Well? I told you to stay standing, didn't I? You're supposed to see it coming. If you have to step back and there's a root sticking out behind you, what will you do? You have to be conscious of your surroundings at all times, even when they change."
The whole afternoon continued on that tune. After the fight, Ensui made her an obstacle course then had her do push-ups, skip, and practice katas. She never stayed up more than ten minutes in a row, but each blow landing made her better. She could now anticipate the bō one time out of four – her master didn't tell her how good of an average it was for a Genin. When it was five in the afternoon, he made her sit in the grass and meditate for fifteen minutes. He dismissed her when she was done, so she would have time to prepare for her date.
Thankful, she rushed to her second shower of the day, dried her hair with a bit of chakra – it was just so convenient – then got dressed. She had decided on a black knee-cut pleated skirt and a white tank top, as well as a lace shirt of the same colour that showed off her shoulders, its wide sleeves making her hands appear small and delicate, with white ballet flats her mother had insisted she took during their last shopping trip. She put her hand in a Nara ponytail again and wrapped a red ribbon around her rubber band. For the first time, she asked her mother to do her makeup.
Kurenai seemed delighted to have such a distraction. Asuma kept an arm around her waist when he could, and her eyes were still puffy, but when Hitomi went downstairs with the makeup bag the woman kept in a drawer, she got to work immediately. She put eyeliner on her daughter first, the wing sharp and clean, then showed her how to apply mascara on her lashes and gloss on her lips. When she saw herself in the mirror, a strange sensation bloomed in Hitomi's stomach. It was as if, for the first time since she had this obnoxious scar on her cheek, she felt like herself again. If it was the power makeup held, she'd learn to use it in her everyday life very quickly.
Lee arrived a bit early, so Kurenai decided to let him in and invite him for tea. He blushed up to his ears when he saw Hitomi, and even more if possible when she kissed him on the cheek. He had come bearing two bouquets of flowers: a pretty little thing of lavender, irises and dahlias for her mother, tied together with a lilac ribbon, and another, a bit more imposing, for Hitomi. Three white roses, four pink roses and one yellow rose, a composition that was probably signed Ino. Each of the two Yūhi took their bouquets, thanking the anxious-looking teenager.
Hitomi wondered if he had asked someone – Tenten, maybe? – for advice. It was probably his first date, after all. The girl was almost certain Lee hadn't ever worn this white shirt before; it was too perfect, too smooth. However, it looked very good on him, hugging his limbs just enough to highlight his muscles. He had paired it with night blue pants that looked just as good. The effort was touching and worked very well, even if Hitomi would have been just as satisfied if he had shown up in his battle outfit.
"Okay," Kurenai said, "I'm going to let you go in town soon, but first, Lee, I know you're a very nice boy. I trust you to have Hitomi come back home before midnight, alright?"
That curfew could seem too lax for an not yet fourteen years old girl, but one couldn't forget she was a shinobi. Rules applied differently to them: if a teenager was old enough to kill, it was complicated to make them follow a strict discipline. Kurenai, very conscious of that paradox, preferred to have her daughter live her life with as little barriers as possible. Ninjas tended to hate those, anyway.
"I understand, Yūhi-san. Don't worry, Hitomi-san will be back here on time, I promise. If I fail, I shall do a thousand push-ups on my fingertips!"
When the two teenagers were done with tea and decided to go, Asuma, Kurenai and Ensui watched them go, smiling. Their tender expressions would have probably disturbed Hitomi a little, if she hadn't been very busy debating about the most efficient way to sharpen a kunai with Lee. After a few minutes, she decided to take his hand, making him blush again. He was really cute.
He guided her through the village, their trained eyes witnessing the sweetness only civilian life held as it unfolded in front of them. Her hand in her companion's, Hitomi memorised the smiles, the children asking to go in their parents' arms, the women laughing quietly and the men discussing the tournament to come. The village hosting the Chūnin exam was buzzing with activity and yet soothingly peaceful.
He took her to a restaurant she didn't know, hidden in the shadow by a stone arch. A sign designated it as "The Desert's Pearl", the words pale cream on very dark wood. Hitomi's eyes widened slightly, her lips smiling before she could even realise it. She hadn't imagined that Konoha had a restaurant specialised in Sunajin cuisine.
The maître d'hôtel who welcomed them was Sunajin without a doubt – Hitomi would have recognised that slight accent everywhere. For a second, the illusion was perfect: she was back in the Desert, Gaara and Ensui would arrive soon and try to make her eat dishes that were too spicy for her poor taste buds, just to see her cheeks redden and her eyes turn wet. Then the spell dissipated, she remembered she was still in the village she had sworn to protect by accepting her forehead protector, and she looked at Lee, her eyes softening. "Thank you," she whispered.
She didn't need to explain why she was thanking him for him to understand, just as she didn't need to know how he had guessed the nostalgia linking her to the sand and intense sun. She followed Lee to the table he had reserved – when did he find the time? – and accepted all the gallant gestures he had for her with grace. Knowing how important honour was for his sensei, Lee's behaviour didn't shock her: he was just showing her how much respect he had for her, and she'd follow such rituals if it allowed him to feel more at ease.
They continued talking after ordering their drinks. Hitomi couldn't help but make sure Lee didn't order any alcohol – she didn't want him to destroy this very fine restaurant, after all – but he obviously knew of this weakness. Just like her, he ordered something fruity and light, not even looking at the wine menu. Ninjas had a complex status in Konoha: a Genin, no matter their age, could theoretically order whatever they fancied, alcohol included, and as soon as they were promoted to Chūnin, they were legally adults.
Not long after, their plates arrived. They started first with little bouchées of meat and vegetables they were to dip in a rich, spicy sauce. When Lee tasted it, his face turned red, and this time Hitomi knew it wasn't something she had done. She couldn't help but giggle, handing him a slice of bread to extinguish the fire in his mouth. The main course arrived then, a kind of couscous served with various pieces of juicy meat. Lee particularly liked the slices of grilled snake, the most Sunajin meat you could imagine. The dessert was just as good: a tray of dates cooked in a variety of ways, from caramelised to grilled and even spiced, of course.
Not once during the whole meal did their conversation die down. Lee didn't only want to talk about their ninja careers, but also about their personal lives, which Hitomi was delighted to do. He told her he was the eldest son of his family, the only one to have become a ninja: his two younger sisters were still studying, one to become a nurse and the other to open a childcare facility. In turn, she told him little stories about her brothers, her mother, Ensui, and even Asuma who was spending more time at home since he had stopped fearing her. They talked about their hobbies beyond training and discovered they both liked reading and swimming.
And Hitomi surprised herself by really, really enjoying the date from start to finish. She could see the devotion Lee infused in his every movement and every decision – he wanted to do his very best because he thought she was worth it. She blushed, laughed without reservation, sometimes gave him a look that was more than just a bit dreamy. He didn't wear his bandages, which meant she could see the traces of his hard training, what never-ending work had offered him and cost him. Despite the calluses and scars, they looked honourable, elegant, strong, and were very much to her taste.
After the meal, he took her to the rampart. He had chosen a spot where guards almost never went at that time of the night, as if he had taken care of studying the schedule of the guards and their patrols – again, when did he have the time? Carefully, as if fearing to be rejected, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. With a smile, she pressed herself against his flank, feeling him stiffen in surprise for a moment then relax and pull her closer.
"I'm having an amazing night, Lee."
"Me too. I could never thank you enough for agreeing to go out with me."
"Why would you thank me? It's not a favour. I wouldn't have done it if I didn't want to."
"I don't know… Maybe I just want to thank you in general. Not just for the humility lesson you served me before the first stage of the exam, but for the kindness and passion with which you talk about the things you love. You make me want to kiss you, to hold you close, and I don't really know how to react to such impulses."
"You can listen to them, if you want. I'd like you to kiss me."
He looked her in the eyes for a moment, his nervousness showing, then did exactly that. His lips were softer than she would have thought. His large hands cupped her cheeks, warm and gentle. It lasted a long time or maybe just a few seconds, until a group of civilians at the foot of the rampart started clapping and cheering, making them separate with a shared giggle. Lee's cheeks were deep pink, but he was smiling like his feelings were too big for his body to contain. He took her hand and kissed her fingers, his thumb brushing against her wrist.
"D-did you like it?" he asked, blushing even deeper. "It was my first kiss."
"Really? I couldn't tell. It was really good, and you can do it again if you want."
He laughed and did as he was told, not caring this time about their quite drunk audience, which was still cheering and congratulating them. After a few minutes, they decided to leave the rampart and find a less busy place to go down in the streets. They ended up settling in a park surrounded by trees that was empty, hoping for some quiet time.
Time flew by from there. They talked more, kissed a lot. Lee's hands, sometimes, when he felt daring, brushed against her waist, the small of her back, and then he blushed and put them in clenched fists on his knees as if he hoped to control them that way. He never could for more than a few minutes. A little after eleven, he started taking her back to the Nara land, one step after the other, as if he was more reluctant to do so than he cared to admit. He kissed her goodbye on the porch and she watched him leave, a smile on her lips.
When she got inside, she immediately felt that her mother was still awake: she was in the living room, Asuma next to her. Hitomi took off her shoes, put on her slippers and went to them, on her face the light and dreamy expression of a teenage girl who had just had a perfectly sweet date from start to finish. The two adults got it immediately, exchanged a knowing smile, then Kurenai kissed her on the cheek and sent her to bed, reminding her to take her makeup off.
The house seemed terribly empty without Sasuke and Naruto to breath life into it. She hadn't expected the blonde boy to be gone, but she had heard Kurenai tell Asuma that Jiraiya had taken him somewhere in the Forest of Fire to train him out of sight. Since his opponent was Hyūga Neji, this was a good choice. With a little sigh, the girl went to the bathroom and took her makeup off, rubbing her eyelids with the lotion her mother had given her until the eyeliner and mascara were gone. As for the gloss, it had disappeared during the meal without her notice, and despite that her lips were a bit pinker than usual – so it was true, what they said about the abundance of kisses.
When she went to her room, Hoshihi and Hai were waiting for her, sprawled on her bed. Her familiar raised his head and greeted her with a wave of his tail, watching as she changed for the night and brushed her hair one last time. He liked to watch as she braided them and said it was quite a fascinating process. Before bed, she took her communicating notebook and told Gaara about her date without getting into the details of it. She knew he was with Baki and busy training, but he'd read her letter eventually, that she didn't doubt at all. As she went to close the notebook, it grew cold under her hand. Frowning, she opened it again.
Dear Hitomi,
I'm so sorry you have chosen to yield so close to the third stage of the exam, but I'm convinced it was the right choice to make. Fighting your cousin seriously would have haunted you for a long time. I don't doubt for a moment the depth of the love you feel for him, and with that love comes fears.
I told Zabuza-shishou about the deserter who attacked you and the boys, in the Forest of Death. He doesn't know much about the guy, except that he has many hideouts in the Elemental Nations. Still, he told me you'd have to be wary if he decided to target you three. Orochimaru doesn't have a reputation for letting prey escape him.
We left the Land of Water this morning, for Konohagakure. Your Spymaster is in the country and Zabuza-shishou needs several things from him, mostly intelligence and weapons. We'll go to the village then and stay there for a whole month, just like you asked. Could you make arrangements for us to enter without being seen? If you want, I can help you work on your ninjutsu once we're here. I could even convince Zabuza-shishou to help us, if you know of a place where we could train without being spotted. I know what it is to feel weak, Hitomi. If I can help you overcome that feeling, I will.
Talk about it all with your shishou before writing back if you need, I can wait.
Take care of yourself,
Haku.
A victorious grin slowly appeared on Hitomi's face. Everything was in place now. She held the notebook against her heart, closed it and laid down, soon joined by her two feline companions, who were taking most of the space in her bed but appeased her nightmares as the hours of the night left one after the other, until it was time again to wake up and train.
Ensui, as if he had never quite left, arrived at her window an hour before dawn, surprised to see her already clothed and prepared for training. Together, side by side, they greeted the sun on the roof as the sky turned pink then orange. He didn't ask about her date, didn't need to: he could read in her posture and relaxed features everything he wanted to know. When they were done warming up, he made her go back inside and started cooking breakfast with as much ease as he would have in his own home – it was almost the case.
"Today, I'm going to teach you the easiest of the corporal seals, the Coercion Seal. We mostly use it to bind prisoners when we don't have any other way of doing it. You'll learn to draw the seal on paper today, but tomorrow I will bring you deer skin so you can become used to the differences a skin surface brings compared to parchment."
She listened to his explanations as she ate, her eyes never leaving the sheet where he showed her again and again the movements and difficulties specific to that seal. Her palms were tingling with the need to take the brush and start working, but she knew an empty stomach would distract her. When they were both done eating, she put the dishes away and went to the living room, where he was waiting for her in seiza, sheets, brushes and ink settled on the coffee table.
They worked for hours, until her body was aching and her eyes stinging. Outside, it was raining, but that didn't stop them from going out to continue the bō exercise, which Hitomi seriously started hating. After a while, Kurenai came to sit on the sheltered patio and watched them while talking with Hai about genjutsu theories that were far too advanced to be of use to her daughter.
After a light lunch, Hitomi went back outside, her cats with her. Hoshihi and Ensui teamed up as the assailant while Hai and Hitomi were charged with protecting the house and stopping them from entering. Their opponents weren't very well coordinated, but they weren't used to working together either, the girl had to admit it. They worked hard until the kitten was so tired she couldn't even lift her paws. With a tender, satisfied smile, Hitomi carried her inside, dried her fur as well as she could, and laid her on the most comfortable spot of her bed before preparing for her appointment with Fukuda.
She arrived a bit early and read a book Ensui had given her about anatomy while she waited. The book was very thorough and illustrated with many diagrams that helped her understand what she was reading. When her name was called, she went inside, nervous. She had many reasons to be: that session didn't go so well. She started to cry barely a few minutes after sitting down, sometimes so distressed she couldn't even talk. Fukuda listened carefully, an understanding expression on her face.
She gave her advice to go through her difficult nights, to appease her anxiety and master the flashes from the Forest of Death that sometimes came back to her, but she couldn't do anything about the voice. Ninjas learned to meditate from a very young age – if that didn't work, the therapist didn't have any other solution, except for trusting the adults doing research for her young patient. She asked her to describe what the voice was telling her when she was afraid or in danger, to tell her why exactly she wanted to listen, and reassured her too: no, she wasn't a monster. Everyone was tempted by such violence at one time or the other. Her inner demon was simply more present than others.