Crossover Fan Fiction / Naruto Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ K a z o k u ❯ Kiss Me Goodbye ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter Seven: Kiss me Goodbye

 

Arashi had never laughed so hard before that he had to hold his stomach to keep the pain away. He sat on one end of the group with Mushin at the other. Biting back his laughs weren't working anymore so he succumbed to them, unable to keep his mirth at bay. He was thankful they were in a private room of a restaurant because a lot of the citizens of Konoha would've probably been scandalized by the behavior of their Yondaime right now, almost rolling in the ground howling with laughter. He wasn't alone though. Beside him, Jiraiya was also laughing his ass off at Kakashi's expense. They've never heard of anyone besting the great copy-nin before.

 

Naruto greatly enjoyed seeing his father laugh and gladly continued his tale. “So after his genjutsu on Kagome backfires and he recovers from his girlish screams-”

 

“My screams were not girly!!!”

 

Sasuke begged to differ, “Yeah they were,” much to Kakashi's annoyance.

 

“- he barely manages to avoid Sasuke's katon.” With the help of the salt and pepper shakers, Naruto demonstrated the scene. “Then he makes the mistake of burying Sasuke on the ground while I'm still stuck in the tree trying to escape, making Kagome the last team member standing. She looks like she's on the verge of tears by now because we all believe that if we don't get the bells we fail, right.” Naruto took a sip of his tea before continuing, “So she pulls out that frickin' girly jutsu of hers-”

 

“Hey!” his sister exclaimed, giving him a swift kick under the table. Easy to do since they were sitting from across each other.

 

“Ow!” he rubbed his aching foot, never losing momentum, “and summons the most disgustingly cute... white animal... thing... blob...” Brows furrowed and hands demonstrated the shape and size of the creature to his audience, salt and pepper flying in all directions “... marshmallow...”

 

“I named it Ru-chan,” Kagome confided to Hinata and Itachi who flanked her on each side.

 

“Hey!” Naruto returned, scowled, “I honestly haven't seen anything like it in my whole life and it looked like a giant white marshmallow to me,” and then shrugged.

 

“Felt like one too,” Sasuke added, shuddering involuntarily while sitting next to Naruto.

 

“... Marshmallow blob?” Miroku asked Kagome from across Hinata's head.

 

She shrugged “I was too tired and panicky. I just wanted to summon something and didn't go through the correct steps so I just sort of... concentrated, did the silent chant and there it was!” and grinned at her accomplishment.

 

“I warned you that not doing the summoning routine will give you random summons,” Mushin frowned at her disapprovingly. She could be so careless at times. “If you do not follow all the steps, it turns into roulette and you never know what you're summoning. That is very dangerous!”

 

“And you taught it to her anyway?” Arashi gaped at the old monk. How could he... no, how dare him!

 

Mushin looked uppity. “She needs to learn all the lost arts of the order. This was just one of the many lower level skills a miko must master. She's not even making shikigami yet,” he sniffed snottily, “and we're tackling that soon,” proud of the fact that he was the miko's spiritual teacher.

 

There was a moment of silence from Arashi.

 

“... Right.” He seriously regretted not knowing that Mushin was evil from the get go. The pious monk façade fooled him.

 

“Anyway!” Naruto got back on track, putting the salt and pepper down. “She summons this thing, right. And we're all like `What the heck is that?!' Even Kakashi-sensei pauses and gives it a weird look. The marshmallow blob bounces and floats - it can fly! - towards Kagome and she whispers to it but sensei's unafraid of the floating marshmallow blob the size of your head so he just stands there and asks `Is that all?' like he's disappointed in her performance.”

 

He looked in the direction of his sensei and shook his head in disappointment. “You know you're not supposed to do that in her presence.”

 

“Not cool,” Miroku agreed from experience.

 

“Bad idea,” Kakashi didn't appreciate even the snot-nosed brat Konohamaru looking at him with pity while shaking his head.

 

“Is it ever!” Naruto laughed, “Kagome did another summon and the ugliest green... wart... holding a staff comes out. The little guy starts crying a river wailing `Kagome-sama! Kagome-sama!' when he sees her and begins thanking her over and over again while kissing the ground. He starts worshipping at her feet then he clings to Gome's leg while continuing his worship and sensei chuckles at the sight, making her angry. The creatures don't look amused either and they start attacking.”

 

“Two times?” Mushin asked in near-hysteria then tsk-ed disappointedly at the miko who lowered her head. “So reckless,” he glared at Arashi, putting the blame on the man for raising such a free-spirited daughter. Arashi glared back at him for teaching his daughter dangerous jutsus.

 

Kakashi sighed and buried his masked face in his palm. He wouldn't be here if it were up to him but the Yondaime made it into an order, citing that he was not only a family friend, he was their sensei as well and that he had every right to celebrate their passing with everybody else. The delicious and expensive restaurant food was just not enough to make the humiliation he was getting worth it. He reached for the wasabi sushi and contemplated shoving it down Naruto's throat. Maybe that would shut him up.

 

“Gome's taijutsu skills are worse than mine,” anticipating a kick from his sister, Naruto jumped out of the way, scooting his chair away from the table but he looked foolish because it never came. “But she looks so silly with this white blob on top of her head and a warty toad on her leg that Kakashi-sensei could barely stop chuckling enough to return her attacks. He grows overconfident until the toad points its staff at him and blasts him with fire.”

 

Kakashi groaned. He just wanted to go home and read the latest Icha-Icha.

 

“That'll teach you to mess with Kagome-sama! The wart says-”

 

“He's not a wart, Naruto.” Kagome scolded. “He's a kappa.”

 

“But he looked like a giant green wart to me,” Naruto argued. “Smelled like it, too.” He wrinkled his nose before turning back to his captive audience, “Then the marshmallow makes a fluffy sound in agreement and sensei looks annoyed that a big wart burned parts of his clothes. `Feel the wrath of my Staff of Heads!' it keeps screaming and blasting sensei with fire. You should've seen it!”

 

Said sensei tried to look for an escape route unnoticeably but Jiraiya held him in place by placing an arm around his shoulders. The only person not openly laughing at Naruto's tale was Itachi but he looked amused and even though Neji and Sasuke weren't loudly guffawing like the rest of them, they chuckled quietly once in a while.

 

“So then sensei manages to disarm the toad. He grabs the stick and throws it away. `Nooo!' the toad screams and runs after it shouting `You'll pay for this!!!' With the fire-spitting toad gone, sensei reaches for Gome... but the marshmallow bites him.”

 

Kakashi cradled his injured hand carefully. “The thing had teeth like a shark!” he argued in his defense, “And it probably had rabies!”

 

No one was listening to him.

 

“Irritated at his lapse in judgment, he stalks Gome purposefully and says `Kagome-chan, I hope you don't mind but I'm going to have to teach you and your little friend a lesson.' Kagome eeps but stands her ground. She puts up a decent fight for almost a minute... or was that thirty seconds? Oh well, anyway, you know sensei out-classes her, and after a short time, she's finally cornered. Not taking any chances this time, sensei captures the marshmallow first, avoiding his mouth, but the little guy has a surprise for him. Sensei's holding the little dude with both his hands, right.” Naruto grinned foxily, mimicking his sensei's stance while waiting for his audience to nod before continuing - “Suddenly the marshmallow zaps sensei with what looked like a thousand bolts -”

 

“Felt like ten thousand to me,” Kakashi grumbled.

 

He never knew what hit him.

 

One minute he had victory within his grasp and the next minute he had Naruto grinning over him while he was flat on his back. Kagome was just finishing her first-aid treatment and he could feel Sasuke's smirk even before he saw it.

 

He groaned in dread. He was never going to live this one down, wasn't he?

 

“- of lightning.” Naruto grinned some more, “Three times. It looked like it hurt. A lot,” the grin was threatening to crack his face in two by now. “If he wasn't holding the thing, I don't think the little guy would've had an opportunity to zap him but he had a tight grip on it. So then after three huge bolts sensei passes out.” He snickered along with the others. “By this time the wart comes back swearing vengeance but sensei's down for the count so he settles for hitting sensei with his stick instead. `That'll teach you to mess with the almighty Jaken' he says. He got in several more hits and kicks before Gome pulls the wart off of sensei and sets us free.”

 

“No wonder I had a pounding headache when I woke up,” Kakashi glared at Kagome while rubbing the lumps on his head, promising pain on that wart if he ever saw him again.

 

“It took all four of us to unbury Sasuke,” Naruto added before turning to Sasuke: “Teme you should go on a diet. You've been eating one too many tomatoes and digging out of that hole could've been easier if you weren't fat.”

 

“You're mistaking me for Chouji, dobe.”

 

“You let a girl, a marshmallow and a green wart beat you up,” Konohamaru was looking at Kakashi in a whole new light, shaking his head.

 

“That was cheating, Kagome-chan.” Kakashi complained, ignoring Konohamaru.

 

Kagome blew him a disrespectful raspberry. “We won fair and square and you know it.”

 

“With teamwork!” Naruto added.

 

“No way, that wasn't teamwork. The only teamwork I saw involved Kagome and her minions!” Kakashi thought about it for a moment. “I shouldn't have passed you three.” He turned to the Yondaime. “Is it too late to rescind my verdict?”

 

Team 7 frowned at him.

 

“It was teamwork!” Naruto insisted once again. “I was cheering Gome on while trying to free myself from the tree,” he boasted.

 

“I was...” Sasuke's brow wrinkled, “... there...”

 

Kakashi snorted. “You fail!”

 

Everybody just laughed at the copy-nin.

 

“You're just sore because they got the best of you.”

 

“By the time he regained conciousness, I was down from the tree, Sasuke was free from the ground and we had our bells. He didn't look injured from the fight but Gome patched him up as best she could anyway.”

 

“The thing had rabies I tell you,” Kakashi insisted, hoping to get a little sympathy.

 

“No way, he was so cute!” Kagome denied.

 

“Poor Kakashi,” Arashi said compassionately then reached out to pat Kagome's head and clap Naruto on the back. “Great work kids! I wish I could've been there to see it!”

 

“Kagome-sama, you know that you'll have to be punished for such recklessness, do you?” Mushin rained on their parade.

 

“But old man, we won because of her!” Naruto defended his sister.

 

“Yeah!” even Hinata found it unfair and came to her defense. “S-she only did what she had to.”

 

Itachi nodded in agreement.

 

Mushin's forehead which extended all the way to the back of his skull wrinkled. “Okay then, if she promises never to be so reckless again I can overlook it this one time.”

 

“I promise!” Kagome fervently agreed. Three extra hours of meditation for a week was going to kill her of boredom for sure. She'd do anything to get out of it.

 

“I propose a toast,” Arashi raised his cup. “To Team 7 - May you become the best ninjas that you could ever be.”

 

“Kanpai!” Everyone lifted their drinks in agreement. Non-alcoholic for the kids and sake for the adults.

 

“And to Kakashi - may you never get into a fight with a marshmallow blob and lose ever again.”

 

Iruka had a huge grin on his face as he poured the miserable-looking jounin more sake. “Welcome to my world, Kakashi!”

 

ღ

 

Whatever goes up must come down.

 

Arashi learned that early in life.

 

“Hokage-sama, the council is waiting.”

 

He experienced the down part, while still feeling fresh from the high on his twins' celebration last night, the next morning. With the graduation over, his workload eased a little but there were a lot of these boring council meetings to sit through. Negotiations with the other hidden villages, politicking with the daimyos and accepting more missions to accommodate the new genins occupied most of his time now.

 

Ah, the advantages of being Hokage... not.

 

He nodded to the chuunin and schooled his Hokage face in place before entering the meeting room. He noted with surprise that there were extra Hyuuga representatives today. Hmmm, what was that about? Normally, their Konoha council meetings involved only the village elders, the Hokage(s), and the clan heads. Technically, the Sandaime was already retired but since his opinion still held a lot of sway in village matters and he was essentially a village elder, he had to attend meetings if it involved something of great importance.

 

Sarutobi-sama often mediated between two parties who couldn't see eye to eye, but this was just another routine council meeting... wasn't it? Uh oh, his Hokage senses were tingling.

 

“The Hyuuga clan has something very important to discuss with us today,” Sarutobi began, taking center stage as their meeting started. “Hiashi, if you will?”

 

Hiashi nodded at the Sandaime and stood up. White eyes scanned the room. “No doubt you are all aware of the incident that happened regarding one of our own and his curse seal close to a decade ago.”

 

Arashi stiffened, sat up straighter in his chair.

 

“A curse seal was placed on one of our Branch Family members, in accordance to custom in our clan. We do it while the child is still young for many reasons. One of them is because it is easier to place the seal on a child rather than wait until he is an adult. Another is if something ever happens to him, the secrets of the Byakugan will remain sealed. Genins are the most weak and vulnerable. The risk of getting captured while on a mission is high and without the seal in place, anyone could examine the remains for the secrets of our clan's bloodline limit.”

 

Each of Hiashi's words stabbed at Arashi one arrow after flaming arrow -

 

“Some might think that this method is cruel, but it's the most efficient way of keeping our secrets as well as the order in our clan. We do not poke our noses in the Akimichi clan's soldier pills, we do not spy on the Aburames to figure out how they treat their bugs nor do we concern ourselves with how the Naras extract medicine from their deer. Each clan has their own practices and customs.”

 

- And it didn't stop there.

 

“Their own secrets,” he looked pointedly at Arashi. “We have tried to reaffix the seal on Neji's forehead year after year but failed each time. It was our hope that it would never come to this, but we have no choice left. The sealing technique refuses to work on him and our council has reached a unanimous verdict.”

 

He paused for a moment to allow the quiet murmuring to subside.

 

“We waited a year longer than we originally planned but the Hyuuga council can delay this no longer. Neji is a genin now, soon to be applying for chuunin status.” He scanned white eyes around the room, said in a voice that sent dread shooting up Arashi's spine with each syllable, “He is no longer an infant, he can take care of himself. It is with our utmost regret to inform you that as of today, Neji is no longer an official part of our clan.”

 

There was stunned silence and utter disbelief from the non-Hyuugas in the room.

 

“He is currently packing his things and moving out of the Hyuuga compound as we speak. No longer will he be recognized by our clan unless -”

 

“Pardon my rudeness Hiashi,” Arashi interrupted, face contorting in barely held rage and disgust, “but what in god's name are you doing to the boy?! He's only a child!”

 

“He's been genin for a year now,” Hiashi calmly replied.

 

“Oh, of course,” Arashi snorted, waving an indulgent hand in the air, “That makes a world of difference even if he's just a boy,” voice dripping with sarcasm.

 

“He has lost his honor and is no longer fit to be part of our clan,” one of the other Hyuuga council members spoke. “We are willing to take him back if he reclaims it, but even without a curse seal, he was still raised in our clan's ways. He is strong, he will survive. His pay as a genin could afford him a roof over his head, clothing and food on the table. He will manage on his own.”

 

He looked so unaffected. He could've been talking about the weather and it wouldn't have made a difference.

 

“Isn't there anything any of us could do to make you reconsider this?” asked Arashi, eyes darted from one Hyuuga face to another. “Stripping him of his honor because of an event that happened beyond his help is a little extreme, don't you think? Surely there is a loophole to even out this terrible injustice.” He schooled his voice to not sound as angry as he was at the moment.

 

“There is,” Hiashi replied. “He can regain his honor on one condition,” he smirked in the direction of the Uchiha. “If you are willing to help him, Yondaime-sama, you are free to do so. We have no objections to that.”

 

“We encourage it even,” another Hyuuga said earning Fugaku's narrowed gaze with his smirk.

 

“What can I do to help him?” Arashi felt like a fish caught in the fisherman's line for some reason.

 

It was odd how all the Hyuugas leaned forward as one, almost as if they had enough practice to be so coordinated with each other.

 

“That's simple,” the Hyuuga on the left said.

 

“All you have to do,” the Hyuuga on the right continued and let Hiashi finish the rest of his sentence -

 

“- Is to let him marry your daughter.”

 

ღ

 

“Are you crazy!!!”

 

Hinata blushed profusely after that unexpected outburst and was glad her best friend had the guts to wave at the people who gawked their way. “Nothing to see here folks, move along,” Kagome added, dragging Hinata to another aisle in the grocery store, away from prying ears and eyes.

 

The two were in a grocery store, Hinata tagging along with Kagome who was buying the ingredients needed to make giri and honmei-choco to give out on Valentine's Day. All the giri choco or “obligation chocolate” and Honmei-choco or “favorite/likely winner” Kagome gave out each year were all homemade but she always made something special for her dad, Naruto and of course, Itachi, who was the sole recipient of her super special honmei-choco.

 

“I'm not crazy,” Kagome argued, mischief lurking behind her eyes, “I think it's time you finally give Naru honmei-choco and let him know - ah, Hinata! Breathe! You have to admit it's a good, no great, idea! Since he hasn't noticed after all these years, I think it's time you take action. One step forward wouldn't hurt.”

 

Years of experience dealing with her super gentle and faint-hearted girl friend automatically made her rub soothing circles on the Hyuuga heiress's back. Hinata was having trouble breathing, she could tell from the blue creeping on to her milky white complexion. She tended to hyperventilate when she got too excited and would even pass out when it was too much for her sweet nature. Those blackouts normally involved a certain clueless blond - close physical contact with him or too much undivided attention would cause Hinata to lose conciousness.

 

It was a weird habit she tried to overcome throughout the years, and with the help of Kagome, she was making small progress. Really small baby steps, nothing too drastic... until now.

 

“Kagome-chan,” Hinata recovered from her bout of panic enough to glare at the other girl, “I refuse to make a heart-shaped chocolate for Naruto-kun, decorate it with `I love you' and - and -” with hands flailing in the background “and give it to him this Valentine's Day!” she panicked once again. “I can't do it!”

 

“Of course you can!” Kagome argued back. “You can decorate it with `Will you go out with me' or `I like you' instead or just leave it blank if you want but you have to give him something this year.” When Hinata continued to look stubborn, she continued, “Think of how happy he'll be...”

 

Hinata struggled for a bit.

 

“He doesn't get a lot of gifts from girls on Valentine's Day...” her voice dropped to a mumble, “I think I'm the only girl who gives him choco on Valentine's Day. Don't you want to make him happy?”

 

Hinata looked pained, “That's underhanded, Kagome-chan.”

 

Kagome grinned unrepentantly. “Come on, you know you want to do it.” She picked off a few extras on the shelves as she continued to convince Hinata, convinced that this was the day she was finally going to be able to convince her friend to take action.

 

Homemade chocolate wasn't hard to make once you got the hang of it. Her first try was a big disaster but their kitchen was used to the abuse. Naru and Papa did worse things to their poor kitchen and they made a good clean-up crew afterwards, licking the spoons and bowls for whatever was left.

 

“He'll be so happy and who knows, he might even return your feelings,” she grinned deviously. “I have it on good authority that he no longer has a crush on Sakura-chan. His one true love is only ramen now, and you're way cuter than ramen.”

 

“Um, thank you?”

 

The longer Kagome talked about her plan, the more Hinata was convinced. But the more Hinata was convinced, the more she got nervous. You can do it, Hinata, Kagome told her. It was good in theory and easier than it seemed when Kagome said it but it made her dizzy once she seriously considered the possibility. Could she really do it? That would be so unlike her, but if it was going to make Naruto-kun happy...

 

“Ah, no! Don't forget to breathe, Hinata. Ah- no, no, don't pass out. Breathe, Hinata, breathe. You can do it, just calm down.”

 

ღ

 

“Calm down?!! How can you tell me to calm down after what he said!”

 

Arashi sweat dropped at the accusing finger pointed in Hiashi's direction. If this didn't have anything to do with him and his family, he would've found the situation comical. “Calm down, Fugaku-san.” Hands clamped firmly on the man's shoulders squeezed when Hiashi failed to calm down, the urge to shake him was strong. This was just bizarre, in his opinion. Why in Gamabunta's name did these things happen to him? “It was just a suggestion, wasn't it Hiashi-sama?”

 

“Yes Uchiha-san, you should calm down. If the father doesn't have any objections to the suggestion, why should you?” A Hyuuga council member smirked at the Uchiha head's reaction.

 

“I didn't say I have no objections,” said Arashi in a careful tone, a vein threatening to pop on his forehead. He removed his hands from Fugaku's shoulder, turning to the Hyuugas on the other side of the room.

 

“You do not wish to help Neji anymore, Yondaime-sama?” The third Hyuuga council member asked.

 

“Of course I do,” he replied sincerely, bracing to navigate through the traps laid out for him. “I'm just... not a believer in interfering with my children's futures, marriage-wise. They should be allowed to choose their own paths, make their own decisions. We aren't living in the Heian Era anymore.”

 

The second Hyuuga council member shook his head. “No, we're not. But political marriages and marriages of convenience aren't unheard of or that uncommon in our village.”

 

“Your own marriage was arranged from birth, was it not?” Village Elder Homura reminded him, adding the tidbit to their conversation and enjoying the pained look on the Yondaime's face.

 

“You looked like you two were very in love,” Village Elder Koharu agreed, unaware of the uncomfortable corner she was helping push Arashi into.

 

“Yes,” Arashi gritted out, growing defensive, “there is that... but I was lucky. We got lucky that we fell in love - I wish to spare my children with the same fate if I could. No one can ever know how arranged marriages turn out and I'm not willing to gamble. Taking a risk in something that they will have no say on is out of the question.” Then to Hiashi: “If my daughter falls in love with Neji-kun in the future, I will, of course, give them my full blessing and support.”

 

Hiashi frowned. “Do you not find Neji acceptable? He is a strong shinobi and an honorable young man. He would do his in-laws proud.”

 

“And you as well?”

 

“Of course,” Hiashi easily agreed.

 

Arashi raised an eyebrow, asking lightly, “Then why are you kicking him out of your clan?”

 

“Hiashi-sama has already explained it earlier,” The second Hyuuga council member replied, his tone indulgent and respectful. “We have no choice - we either exile him, giving him a chance to regain his honor, if that is his wish, or we execute him.”

 

He said it so matter-of-factly it was all Arashi could do to keep his temper in check. His hand curled into a fist. “Isn't that a bit extreme? He is only a boy. He has done nothing wrong...” he stopped his tirade, realizing he had come full circle from his earlier outburst.

 

“That may be so,” Hiashi said, “but what we are doing is no different from the common practice of shinobi villages hunting down ninjas when they go abandon their villages. To protect the secrets of a clan, no, of a village, missing-nins are placed in the Bingo Book and the bodies are brought back to the village. When shinobi die their bodies are cremated to protect whatever secrets can be exposed through the examination of the remains.” Face impassive, “We have shown mercy by allowing him to live at a great risk to exposing the secrets of our Byakugan because he has potential,” he continued.

 

“Perhaps they could start with the courting period first,” The first Hyuuga council member pushed, unwilling to give up the subject of the Yondaime's daughter merging into their clan. “Neji-kun is self-sufficient now that he goes on missions, he will live on his own while he courts your daughter. Although our council fully supports this, he will be acting entirely on his own with no further influence from us until he regains his honor.”

 

“This is just a ploy to assimilate the miko into your clan.” Fugaku glared balefully at Hiashi. “Your nephew hasn't lost his honor.”

 

“I assure you, Uchiha-san,” The second Hyuuga council member replied in behalf of the Hyuuga head, “that he has. We have shown great leniency in allowing him to live despite numerous failed attempts of placing the seal on him. We are showing more mercy than any Hyuuga has ever been allowed in our entire clan's history. We have spared him from execution because he is clearly under the protection of the Yondaime's daughter. We are not even forcing him to regain that lost honor, it is his own choice. If he wants to, he could pursue that path. If he doesn't, he remains exiled until he redeems himself.”

 

Fugaku snorted. “Then what is all this talk about arranged marriages?” He was sore about the issue and they all knew it. Many times he has hinted of arranging one with Arashi's daughter with one of his sons but the Yondaime dodged the subject each time. He'll be damned before he'd let these scheming Hyuugas get the better of him.

 

“It is merely a friendly suggestion.”

 

“Only if Yondaime-sama wishes to help Neji-kun.”

 

“We are in no way implying that it is mandatory on either side.”

 

Hiashi nodded at his clan's council. “Isn't it time for Kagome-chan to consider her choice of suitors, Yondaime-sama?”

 

Arashi winced at the touchy subject, uncomfortably sweating bullets under such scrutiny from everyone in the room. “She just graduated from academy... She's still very young.”

 

“It's never a bad idea to think about these things while they're young,” Village Elder Homura thoughtfully added his two cents in.

 

“If that is the case, then allow me to put forth my son's suit as well then,” Fugaku interjected.

 

Loud murmurs echoed throughout the chamber, giving the Yondaime a big headache.

 

“My daughter's suitors have to go through rigorous tests before I could deem them worthy.” Arashi was still on the defensive an hour or two later. He was running out of excuses, so he clung to whatever ideas his mind could grasp, however half-baked they may be.

 

“What sort of tests?” One of the Hyuuga council members inquired; glad they were finally getting somewhere. Their tactical scheming was finally going to work!

 

“Well,” Arashi quickly improvised, grasping for straws, “first he has to get the holy basin of Buddha.” He started counting them off one by one on his fingers, proud of his improvisation skills. “Next is a legendary azalea made of silver and gold, the third is a fire-rat robe, the fourth is a colored jewel from a dragon, and lastly a seashell treasure of the shallows.” He finished it off with a smug look; he never failed to amaze himself sometimes. He really is the greatest Hokage!

 

All of the people inside the room couldn't help but sweatdrop at their Yondaime. The comical beads of sweat grew bigger and bigger upon each of his demands. The room and the random bird on the window sill fell silent as nary a sound could be heard. Hiashi was the first one to find his voice from the sea of incredulity.

 

“Yondaime-sama,” he treaded carefully, “if you don't mind me asking... why in Konoha's name are you quoting from the legend of Princess Kaguya?”

 

“Oh,” Arashi huffed, looking a little put out that they were able to figure it out. Damn! And here he thought he had them in the palm of his hand... Damn!

 

“Yes oh,” a Hyuuga council member repeated blandly. And this man was supposed to protect their village? Konoha is doomed.

 

“What now, Arashi?” Village elder Koharu asked.

 

ღ

 

“So from now on, Neji-kun is going to be living with us!” Arashi tried to liven up his announcement by giving his children a big smile while patting Neji's head, affectionately, in a nervous gesture. It didn't work, he noticed. From the looks of things, they were upset with his revelation.

 

“Neji got kicked out of his clan?” Naruto goggled at their new housemate. “How could they do that to him!” shouted the half that was outraged on his friend's behalf. The sad part of him looked at Neji with pity and said “I'm sorry to hear that, man.”

 

Neji was taking his expulsion in stride. Ever since his father's death at the hands of the Kumogakure shinobi, he felt less affinity towards his own clan. He harbored a tiny spark of resentment towards his uncle but none towards his cousins and he was never malicious. The childish part of him thought that if it weren't for his uncle, his father wouldn't have volunteered to march to his own demise to save his older brother. But he understood.

 

They were siblings and he instinctively knew that his father wished to protect his precious brother because their bond was strong. He noticed time and time again how his own friends would bicker with each other but unite against a common foe to protect the other. He didn't have any siblings but their example was good enough.

 

His relationship with their clan head was formal and a bit stiff at times but that was also understandable. Even without a curse seal on his forehead, he was from the Branch House and Hiashi-sama was from the Main House. Even without a curse seal, tradition dictates that only the first born could ever become a clan leader and his lack of seal only made him an oddity in the clan.

 

With the exception of Hinata and Hanabi, all the other Hyuugas resented him for his freedom. Freedom that none of the Branch Members were ever allowed. They didn't think it was fair and secretly wished the Yondaime's daughter would release them from the clan's shackles, too. But there were factors that had to be accounted for. The first reason why none of the other Branch Members came forward to ask, threaten or beg Kagome the same treatment Neji received was because of the curse seal already implanted on their foreheads. Two wrongs don't make a right and insufferable pain was dealt upon whoever attempted to have their seals removed. The second reason was the Yondaime. No one wanted to mess with the guy or get on his bad side. Not when he was the most powerful ninja in their village. Even prideful Hyuugas knew what the meaning of self-preservation was.

 

Kagome was never held accountable for her actions because she was but a toddler when she did it, and her father vowed she would never interfere with the Hyuugas and their clan rules again. The toddler could be excused but someone older who was aware of her actions will not go unpunished for violating private clan business. No one was stupid or inhuman enough to insist punishment on an innocent baby.

 

“It doesn't matter,” Neji replied, shrugging indifferently. He was touched with their concern but it was unnecessary. “They told me I could come back once I regain my honor but it's fine.”

 

“But it's not okay!” wailed the little miko in mixed anger and guilt. “They threw you out because of what I did! All of this is my fault!” Her chin quivered, “I'm so sorry Neji!” And her eyes started to water.

 

“This is not your fault!” Three males dreading the sight of female tears shouted as one.

 

“You were just a baby -” started Arashi, patting his daughter on the head.

 

“- and you didn't know what you were doing,” continued Naruto, rubbing his sister's back.

 

“Not living under the stifling confines of the Hyuuga compound is a step up for me,” Neji assured, hands making awkward gestures in the air. “This is a good development.”

 

“- so you're not to blame here at all,” all three chorused again.

 

“I should thank you,” Neji nodded.

 

Kagome paused from her growing guilt “Really?” but was dubious.

 

“Yeah!” Naruto agreed. “Absolutely! Just think of all the fun we're going to have together!”

 

“But your honor...”

 

“Can be restored in due time,” Arashi refused to tell his children what it would take to restore said honor but it would have to be enough for now. They had plenty of time to worry about that next time. He was perfectly willing to let Neji live with them for the next millennia and more, honestly. “We should celebrate after we get Neji-kun settled,” he resorted to bribery. “Sushi,” he hurried before the twins could make any demands, “since this is for Neji-kun and not the two of you,” he shot them meaningful looks.

 

“You don't really mind?” Kagome asked Neji once again just to make sure.

 

“I don't mind,” he gave her a genuinely rare smile and Kagome brightened.

 

“Okay!” she rubbed the unshed tears away, cheerful meter recharged. “Naru, Papa and I are going to make sure that this is going to be the best thing ever!” she promised with a determined fist pumping in the air.

 

ღ

 

This was the worst thing to ever happen... ever.

 

Sasuke thought as he watched Neji prance around without his shirt on in the Uzumaki house.

 

Well... he wasn't really prancing per se. Technically, the Hyuuga was training in the backyard, but what was the difference? He still acted like he lived here or something!

 

“He lives here now,” Naruto explained to his best friend as gently as he could. “He got kicked out of his clan and in order for him to restore his honor he has to come live with us under tousan's care.”

 

Or at least as far as he knew.

 

“Kicked out of the clan?”

 

“Yeah. He was banished,” Naruto explained, misunderstanding his friend's question. “Exiled. Expulsed. Ostracized. No longer part of-”

 

“I know what banished means, dobe!”

 

“Oh, right. So yeah, he's staying with us now.” He smiled to alleviate the tension in the air. “Poor guy, huh?”

 

`Poor guy' weren't exactly the words that Sasuke had in mind right now. His inner thoughts ran along Neji must die. He didn't care if the entire Hyuuga clan held Kagome responsible for what she did close to a decade ago. She was still in her diapers then! Can't they give the baby a break?

 

“This is all just an evil ploy on Hiashi's part.”

 

He understood the meaning behind his father's cryptic grumbled words this morning then, when he urged his youngest to rush to visit his friends' house. Sasuke was practically shoved off the bed and thrown out of the house in haste.

 

Evil, evil Hyuugas! And Hiashi was the most evil one of all!

 

Why hadn't his father thought about this first? No wonder everyone in Konoha thought that the Hyuugas were the strongest clan in the village! They were cunning and sneaky and - why is Kagome talking to Neji while he has no shirt on?!

 

His feet moved on their accord, striding purposefully towards the chummy duo.

 

“That was great, Neji!” Kagome said, watching him pat his sweat with the towel she provided.

 

“I missed one, actually. I keep overlooking the ones on my blind spot,” he shared with trace amounts of frustration in his voice. Hours of training failed to provide him a solution for the only known weakness of his bloodline limit, which is a blind spot behind the first thoracic vertebra. It frustrated him.

 

“Having fun practicing so early in the morning, Hyuuga?”

 

Neji didn't have to turn around or use his Byakugan to identify the speaker. “Yes,” he simply replied, giving Sasuke a satisfied smirk when they came face to face with each other.

 

Sasuke's lips curled in a displeased sneer.

 

“Oh you're here, Sasuke! Are you training with Naru today? Maybe you could spar with Neji; he's been practicing all morning.” Kagome smiled at her friend, oblivious to the hostile atmosphere and heated looks her friends were throwing each other. There were no animals within a ten feet radius, aware of the danger that lurked in this backyard.

 

“Actually Kagome, I'm done.” Neji made a big show of rolling his shoulders and loosening his neck muscles. Fate had always been unrepentantly stingy with him before but now it unexpectedly dealt him a winning hand. “I think I'll go take a quick shower and get a light snack before lunch.” His life couldn't possibly get any better than this.

 

“Yeah, you didn't have breakfast.” Kagome's brows furrowed in concern before an enlightened fist slapped against her open palm. “I'll fix you one before I cook lunch. Leave it to me.”

 

Neji looked unsure. “You don't have to do that...”

 

“Of course I don't!” she agreed, “But I want to. You're not a guest in the house but I do this all the time for Papa and Naru so why shouldn't I do it for you?”

 

Yes, the tide finally decided to turn on his favor. “Thank you, Kagome” and it only doubled his pleasure that Sasuke looked like he just swallowed a whole lemon. There was a visible swagger in his step when he bid the Uchiha a good day and went back to his room for some clothes after his bath. Now he knew what happy felt like.

 

ღ

 

Itachi wasn't happy.

 

He was never the emotional type because emotions were for weak people, but a feeling that could only be described as deep irritation nested in his chest and was quickly laying down eggs.

 

He didn't mean to eavesdrop on his parents' private conversation, really he didn't, but what did one do when all you wanted was to grab a quick snack from the kitchen only to have it stalled because your mother and father sounded like they were having a serious conversation in there?

 

He knew he shouldn't have stayed close to the wall and listened, hoping to calmly walk in on a precise moment as if he didn't hear a thing and then leave after he got his food. Stupid rumbling hungry stomach. Since when did he listen to his stomach instead of his brain anyway? Why did he have to hear his father telling his mother “I've talked with the Yondaime and discussed our son formally courting his daughter.”

 

“Aren't they a bit too young for that, anata?” His mother asked hesitantly.

 

And why did his father have to reply with “I had to do it now because the Hyuugas were making their move.”

 

His mother sighed, accepting her husband's decision. “I don't understand why you chose Sasuke though. I'm sure Itachi is more suitable for -”

 

“No. Itachi...” Fugaku's voice dropped to below a very low whisper now and the blood rushing to Itachi's ears prevented him from hearing the rest of the sentence.

 

Suddenly he wasn't so hungry anymore. He closed his eyes and for a brief moment, the image of him running his sword through his father's gut passed behind his mind's eye before he opened them once again. He was so irritated, his sharingan was activated.

 

ღ

 

“You don't like it?” Sad blue eyes looked at him hopefully.

 

He shook his head. “No, I like it.” Itachi carefully took a bite out of the heart-shaped choco and couldn't help but soften under the combination of sweetness from the candy and her shy smile.

 

She never failed to give him chocolates every year since she discovered what Valentine's Day was. One look at the chocolates he received and anyone could tell that his were different from the others. That alone drove him to eat every last bite of it even though he didn't like chocolate. They were special, and not in the way that Naruto-kun's or Arashi-sama's were.

 

Still, he couldn't help but toss a hateful look at the chocolates in his brother's hands, willing it to disappear or die - preferably both. The irrational green-eyed monster that laid eggs in his chest that afternoon he overheard his parents' conversation hatched a lot of unhealthy emotions in him.

 

One of them constantly nagged - Why Sasuke and not him? Formally bringing the younger Uchiha into the picture would only serve to complicate things for him. He liked things the way they were now. Pesky flies hovered over her once in a while but none that he wouldn't think twice of cutting down, if need be. That weird Hojo kid and the Hyuuga were small fry compared to him. And Sasuke was too but his father was another matter.

 

Fugaku was clan head and could give him more than just minor bumps in the road if he decided to get serious. He wasn't as formidable an opponent as the Yondaime was but still... the phrase `nip it in the bud' came to mind.

 

Maybe he should tell now her before things are blown out of proportion. “... Kagome...”

 

“Oh!” Kagome suddenly squealed, unconsciously gripping a patch of his shirt. “Look, look!” she whispered excitedly, trying to be discreet as she pointed, “Hinata's giving her handmade chocos to Naru!” Gone was her shy, blushing face when she gave her carefully-made present to Itachi. Hinata's awkwardness and Naruto's clueless-ness taking center stage for the moment.

 

Her excitement was too much to interrupt, so he turned to look.

 

ღ

 

Tazuna had to look away from the outpouring of grief, unable to deny the tears discharging from his own eyes. The girl sobbing over the lifeless body of her friend would break even the hearts of the most hardened of criminals.

 

Sasuke was dead.

 

Kagome's world came crashing down and time literally stopped.

 

More than a week ago, Team Seven had been assigned a bodyguard mission to protect a bridge-builder named Tazuna from the Land of the Waves. It was the very first non D-ranked mission they had and the team was really psyched to go. Naruto had issues with the old man at first, especially when his height was questioned, but he was soon eager to prove himself and received a poisonous hand wound to show for it.

 

Sasuke wasn't the only one who didn't choke with their first real ninja fight. Naruto had to be saved by Kakashi and although Kagome had enough wits to create a shield around her and Tazuna, Sasuke had to come to their rescue.

 

Despite all the talk and conditioning they received, Naruto and Kagome just didn't have enough killer instincts yet.

 

Team Seven's list of foes didn't stop at the Demon Brothers at the outskirts of Konoha. As they neared the Land of the Waves, Momochi Zabuza, a former ANBU and current missing-nin from Kirigakure also confronted them. He was the toughest opponent any of the new genins have faced so far and their teamwork was put to the test.

 

Kagome had a sneaking suspicion that her team was coddling her, forcing her to be the last line of defense while they tackled the job of engaging the enemy in combat. “Take care of Tazuna, Kagome” was what her male teammates said. She knew better than to question orders, especially from their team leader, so she tried her best to `take care of Tazuna'. She never understood why Mushin-sama instilled the need for her energy shield to be very effective, even employing her father's and Kakashi's help to test it using their one-of-a-kind techniques, but she was thankful that she could confidently hold her own against most attacks even if her offensive skills weren't on par with her defensive ones. Compared to Naruto whose constant sparring partners were their father or Jiraiya or to Sasuke who was the top student of their class, her offensive taijutsu skills were only equivalent to Hinata's at best.

 

As she watched her teammates battle Zabuza while protecting Tazuna behind her safe and sturdy bubble, for the first time in her life, she felt a little inadequate. Sasuke was skilled enough to use the Fuuma Shuriken and Naruto was ingenious enough to think of a strategy to trick the Demon of the Hidden Mist to release their sensei from his water prison. Kakashi also blew them all away when he used his sharingan against the `freak with no eyebrows', as Naruto dubbed him. All three of them were brilliant.

 

After the hunter-nin carted Zabuza's body away they had to nurse Kakashi back to health. Using the sharingan placed an immense strain on his non-Uchiha body and he was physically exhausted. Kagome healed the team's wounds as best as she could with her miko powers but Kakashi had to conquer his exhaustion by himself and cure it with sleep.

 

Naruto scolded her from overexerting her genin medic skills but she was too stubborn to listen. If they trained themselves to the point of exhaustion then why wasn't she allowed to cure her teammates with the same dedication? That was the first real fight she had with him, complete with screaming voices and pointing fingers on both their parts, and she would've stomped away angrily if only she didn't pass out from weariness.

 

While Sasuke was forced to play nursemaid to his fallen comrades, Naruto took the time to beat some sense into Inari about true heroes and what they were capable of. He did calm down after a while and alternated duties with Sasuke, but the guilt ate at him after his sister didn't wake up until a day later. He promised never to yell at her again if she promised to never scare him like she did ever again, he told her, but she didn't make any promises on her part, choosing to remain stubborn until the end.

 

Another day after that, Kakashi woke up and they started chakra training exercises. Kagome aced the tree-climbing exercise on her first try due to her training with Mushin, dangling her legs as she sat on the tree branch, asking for taijutsu training from Kakashi instead. Naruto and Sasuke took the whole night to climb all the way to the top, presenting her with several cuts and bruises to heal afterwards. Their unreasonable rivalry was in full throttle, each determined to be the best for their own reasons.

 

Kakashi's instincts telling him something was wrong with the first fight with Zabuza were justified a few more days later when the missing-nin surprised them at the bridge. Once again Kagome was left behind to protect their mark while her teammates engaged their enemies in fights. The hazy fog separated the team mates from each other, forcing them to concentrate on their individual battles and tasks at hand.

 

Tazuna huddled closer to the girl, feeling safe inside her protective bubble. Kakashi was locked against a fierce battle with Zabuza who relentlessly teased him about his subordinates' sure deaths at the hands of his seasoned apprentice.

 

Haku was far stronger and more experienced than the two male rookies of Team 7 and it didn't take long for him to trap them in his ice jutsu. Sasuke managed to activate his sharingan although he had two dots on one eye and only a single dot on the other, but Haku's experience proved to be more overpowering than Sasuke's bloodline limit and he went down from a rain of well-placed senbons when he moved to protect the unconscious Naruto.

 

Naruto, waking up from being knocked out earlier, opened his eyes just in time to see his best friend fall face first towards the ground. Reacting out of instinct, he caught Sasuke before he hit the ground but he was quickly losing it.

 

“You're such an idiot, dobe.” Sasuke managed to hurl the biting insult despite his fading vision. “If it weren't for you, I would've had a chance to win.”

 

Naruto bit back the tears threatening to spill out of his eyes, uncaring that he was leaving himself open to Haku's attacks while gently cradling his injured friend. “Who told you to do that teme! I don't need you to protect me!”

 

“My body moved on its own.” He would've placed more sarcasm behind his sentences if he could.

 

“Gee teme, I didn't know you cared so much.”

 

Snorting hurt so he smirked instead. “Don't get me wrong. I didn't do it for you, dobe. If you die, Kagome will be sad.” At least, he consoled himself as he rapidly lost conciousness, he was dying honorably. No shrieks of pain or troublesome tears. And it was an added bonus knowing that the dobe would be wracked with guilt due to his `heroism'.

 

And then Sasuke succumbed to the darkness.

 

Naruto laid him gently on the ground before facing Haku with hooded eyes. Wounds received from Haku's attacks slowly healed themselves as a strange mist rose up from within the blond boy's body.

 

Haku would have taken a step back from the menacing aura surrounding his opponent if not for the fact that he was inside a sheet of ice. Eyes widened beneath his mask when it met Naruto's.

 

They weren't blue anymore.

 

“How dare you kill Sasuke!”

 

The boy's voice wasn't just his own anymore. A red aura was rapidly spiraling into the air, forcing Haku to brace himself as if he was inside a tornado.

 

“How dare you do that to my friend!”

 

Haku's resolve faltered for a minute, buckling under the weight of Naruto's killing intent.

 

“You're going to pay for this!”

 

It was time to prove his worth to Zabuza-san.

 

Kakashi's hairs stood on end as he battled Zabuza. The mist jutsu the missing-nin cast at the start of the fight was still thick around them but he didn't really need to see his opponent now, did he? A scroll, sacrificial blood and several quick hand signs could fix that, and he hurried to prepare them.

 

This was bad, he had to end this soon or else something even worse was going to happen.

 

He could feel the familiar menacing chakra, one he would never forget even if he grew to a ripe old age of two hundred and one. He could taste it in the air.

 

“Your subordinates are probably dead by now,” Zabuza taunted from somewhere in the mist. “Give it up Kakashi, you're no match against us - your ickle baby ninjas aren't a match for Haku. He should be done toying with them now. I'd be surprised if one of them is still standing. All that's left for him to do is kill that kunoichi in your team to get to the old man.”

 

“Don't underestimate us,” Kakashi replied, uneasiness growing. Bright red chakra mixed with blue shot to the sky just as he finished his summoning ritual.

 

Even Zabuza was startled. “What is tha-”

 

“Fox Fire!!!”

 

Kagome's attention snapped to the direction of the blue fire when it blasted the mist within the vicinity. Chunks of ice rained down upon them and it was all she could do to keep her shield up against the shock wave, sheltering Tazuna along with her.

 

She spotted her brother immediately after the mist cleared. “Naruto!” A little taken aback by the weird look on his face, she gasped when she saw Sasuke lying on the ground. “Oh my god, Sasuke!”

 

Her chakra shield flickered for a moment before she lowered it all the way down, much to the disapproval of Tazuna.

 

“Kagome-chan!” He half-screeched nervously.

 

“Sasuke! Naru, what's wrong with Sasuke?” The urge to run to her teammates' side was strong but she clamped it down, having enough presence of mind to stay with Tazuna, as per Kakashi-sensei's orders.

 

Naruto didn't respond, giving his sister a sad look and something else before turning his full attention to Haku.

 

Sensing the girl's dilemma, Tazuna placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. “If I go with you to check on your teammate, I don't think you'll be going against your sensei's orders,” the man offered.

 

Kagome didn't think twice about it, grabbing the bridge builder's hand and dragging him to where Sasuke was. Naruto's fight relocated several yards away from them due to the force of the blow he landed on Haku, strong enough to break the guy's face mask. A weird blue fire engulfed him, protecting him from Haku's attacks, rendering his ice useless.

 

The young miko in training didn't waste any time, dropping down to her knees, hands glowing pink ki. She hardly noticed Kakashi's nin-dogs pinning Zabuza down, although she did see most of what happened next. Seconds ticked into minutes but her fallen team member remained unresponsive.

 

Tazuna watched slack-jawed and in awe while Kagome's sobs spilled forward, dread creeping on her spine. Sasuke wasn't responding and he was cold! He wasn't breathing!

 

He's dead.

 

No!

 

Sasuke's dead.

 

I don't believe that!

 

He's gone.

 

No he's not!

 

He's not moving, check his pulse... nothing.

 

While Kakashi gloated at Zabuza, old man Tazuna was moved by the grief the girl was exhibiting. He lost a lot of friends while building this dream bridge before and he even watched his daughter and grandson mourn the loss of his son-in-law, but this girl's grief touched him to the very depths of his soul. He wanted to say something, anything to help her but he was too chocked up in his emotions.

 

Kagome was inconsolable.

 

Off to one side, Haku wished for Naruto to end his existence calmly while Kakashi got his `present' ready for Zabuza.

 

But wait!

 

Looking around, she didn't see any sign of a shinigami.

 

And!

 

Regaining her wits enough to press her ear firmly on his chest, she could feel his heartbeat. It was really faint yet it was there. She doubled her efforts in response, desperate not to lose him. If it meant giving him her own life force, so be it!

 

“Sasuke!”

 

He was floating in darkness, unable to see anything. He was fine with it, he felt weightless. Time was irrelevant in the darkness and he couldn't remember anything else aside from the feeling of being alone in his own little world.

 

“Hang in there! If you die, I'm never going to forgive you!”

 

Huh. If a person was dead, why would it matter if someone never forgives him for dying?

 

Wait.

 

Why does that voice sound familiar?

 

“Sasuke, wake up!”

 

Even when he opened his eyes in the proverbial darkness he couldn't see anyone. Maybe it was just a figment of his imagina-

 

“Sasuke!!!”

 

No.

 

That certainly didn't sound like a dream. And neither was the warm chakra flowing through him.

 

“Kagome?” He suddenly rasped like a drowned man, eyes fluttering open to meet watery blue ones peering down on him.

 

“Sasuke, you're alive!” Big drops of saline rolled down her cheeks to rain on his. “Naru thought you were dead!” she sobbed in relief, keeping healing hands on him. “I thought you were dead! You weren't breathing! You were cold and you weren't moving! And - and - I'm just glad you're not dead!!!” She would've hugged him at that moment but she forced herself to continue pumping healing ki into him instead.

 

“That makes the two of us,” Sasuke removed the needles out of his arm carefully. Wincing was out of the question because he had to take it like a man.

 

“Hold on, let me get that for you.” Kagome fussed over him. “Don't make any sudden movements. Haku didn't seem like he wanted to kill you and it looks like he didn't aim for any of your vital points but you should take it easy, just to be on the safe side.”

 

He had to admit that it felt good to be fussed upon, liked the attention he was getting. Warm chakra, careful removal of needles from his body and Kagome caring about his welfare - what more could he ask for?

 

“Haku?” He asked, sitting up with her help. She didn't have to do it really, he had enough strength in him to do at least that, but he wasn't complaining.

 

“The boy you fought.”

 

Oh yeah. “What happened to him?”

 

She diverted his attention to an injured figure leaning on a Naruto clone while facing off against Gatou's paid mercenaries. Fighting alongside the Naruto clones were a whole lot of other Kakashi clones.

 

“He's injured, not worse than you are, but he does have a big giant wound from sensei's attack. Naru tackled him before it landed, but it grazed him and threw off sensei and parried his attack with,” a frown graced her face “his new fire jutsu.”

 

“Fire jutsu?” Sasuke's brow lifted. Since when did Naruto have a fire jutsu?

 

Fox Fire

 

Why did that sound so familiar?

 

Kagome brushed the question aside and continued to explain, “Everything was a little weird for a moment and Naruto moved faster than I've seen him move before. I'm surprised he got there in time to - ah! I told you not to get up! Stop! Wait, hold on.” She hurried to support him as he stood up, her explanatory speech cut off.

 

“I can take care of myself,” he snapped. “I'm not weak.”

 

“I'm not saying you are,” she looped his right arm around her shoulders and acted as his crutch. “I'm just saying that you should take it easy because you just recovered. I healed you but don't overtax yourself -”

 

“Kagome.”

 

“- I don't want you to pull a muscle or aggravate any internal injuries. I'm not an expert or even certified medic-nin yet you know. I wouldn't know if you're truly okay or -”

 

Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes, tuning out her usual lecture about being careful. What did she think he was, a baby? He didn't need her constant mothering, although it felt nice; he was a big boy capable of taking care of himself.

 

Their current situation on the bridge just turned precarious. Zabuza, the leader of the mercenary gang facing off against the Naruto and Kakashi's clones, just killed Gato and his newly unemployed goons wanted payback. Zabuza conveniently keeled over after taking his revenge, leaving heavily injured Haku, bloodied-up Kakashi and very tired Naruto to deal with the aftermath. Kakashi's kage bunshin jutsu produced more clones than Naruto's did, but they were still unevenly matched; five ninja, four with severely depleted chakra and one with poor taijutsu skills, and an old bridge builder against a ship-full of angry gangsters carrying dangerous weapons.

 

It was a good thing Inari came with lots of reinforcements.

 

“Thank goodness!” Kagome would've dropped to her wobbly knees if not for her body acting as his crutch. “I don't know I was made to take this much excitement,” she commented dryly, watching her brother grin at Inari with triumph.

 

The would-be gangsters took a step back, realizing that they were at a disadvantage now, and quickly - literally - jumped off the bridge one by one to escape retribution. The conquering villagers lined the edge of the unfinished bridge, making sure the gangsters were properly chased off, tails tucked between their legs.

 

It was a glorious day for Inari and the townsfolk. Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief, sending a silent prayer of thanks that the ordeal was finally over.

 

Sasuke regarded the injured Haku saying his farewell to Zabuza's corpse with narrowed eyes. Haku defeated him and Naruto was able to stand up to him. Did that mean he was weaker than Naruto? How was he ever going to be stronger than his niisan if he can't even be stronger than the dobe?

 

“Ow!” a sharp pinch to the side brought him out of his daydream, eyes meeting furious blue ones.

 

“I was seriously scared you know!” Kagome continued to rant at him, irritated that he was spacing out just now. “How dare you and Naru and - hiccup - and sensei scare me like that!”

 

She was really cute when she got angry. Cheeks flushed, eyes burning with determination, glaring at him. He was taller than her and she looked really adorable whenever she tilted her head to look up at him.

 

“Kagome.”

 

“I really hate this! I never want to feel like this ever again!!!”

 

“Kagome.”

 

“I honestly thought you were dead! What would've happened if...” frustrated hands flailed in the air, narrowly avoiding hitting him in the face. “Could you imagine how I'm supposed to face Mikoto-mama if you died, huh?!”

 

“Ka-go-me.”

 

“If I were her, I'd blame me for my lack of skills! How could I let my teammates down like that!”

 

He sighed, “Kagome, shut up.”

 

She narrowed eyes at him. “Don't tell me to shut up. You have no right to tell me to shut up. You forfeited that right when you pretended you were dead, scaring me half to death.”

 

“I didn't pretend to be dead,” he responded, trying hard not to laugh at her absurd comment. “I was unconscious. I didn't know if I was dead or not.” A thoughtful look crossed his face. “I thought for a minute I was...”

 

“Yeah well, never do that again.”

 

He gave her a look.

 

She huffed childishly, convinced she was right. “It was scary and even Naru was convinced. I don't think I'll ever recover from the fright you gave me -”

 

“Kagome.” She was cute when she got angry and her concern was very touching but he didn't need this lecture right now.

 

“- Check my hair! I bet you there's a gray one there and you caused it, I swear!”

 

“Kagome,” he wondered what it would take to get her to calm down.

 

“If I have gray hair, you're going to pay for it! This is all your fault!”

 

Sasuke rolled his eyes. She was getting into her sermon now, long gone from the rational world. It would take her at least several hours to get it out of her system, he estimated from experience, so he did the only thing anyone in his position would have done - he leaned forward and kissed her - causing the whole world to grind to a screeching halt.

 

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Notes: Apologies to Square Enix for the chapter's title and Gundam Wing and thanks for all the reviews.