Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Premiership ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 4 )

A/N:

I want to say thanks to my beta, bloodhill, who wiling to spare her time to edit my story. Thanks you so much!


Chapter 3

The next morning...

“Why can't these vultures leave that poor kid alone? Damn wanker!!!” Swore Asuma as he impatiently folded the morning paper and slammed it to the kitchen counter.

“ASUMA!” Yelled Kurenai, her red eyes shot a deathly glare toward the back of her husband's head whilst her hand brushed the soft black hair of a five-year-old boy who was sitting on the dining table eating his scramble eggs lovingly.

Asuma turned his body to face his wife and son. “I'm so sorry, honey… it's just that…”

“What does wanker means?” asked Ryu Sarutobi innocently, cutting off Daddy's words effectively as Mommy let out another deathly glare.

“It's eh… something that we're going to talk about in eh… 10 years time,” answered the super defender of Konoha FC under the close watch of his clearly annoyed wife.

Fortunately for Asuma, Ryu didn't press the matter any longer. The boy just shrugged his shoulder and continued to eat his breakfast. “I'm done. Can I go swim now, Mommy?”

“In 20 minutes. Now, why don't you go to your room and put on your bathing suit?”

“The black one?”

“Yes, the black one.”

“Okay.”

Asuma watched his son running out of the dining room before turned his attention back toward his beautiful wife. The lethal glare was still very much intact.

Here we go… the words-you-don't-speak-off-in-front-of-your-child lecture…

“So, what exactly did those wankers say about our poor Naruto?” She asked calmly.

Asuma, who was so prepared to take any kind of wrath, certainly didn't expect that one coming. Being flabbergasted, Asuma could only stare at Kurenai with his mouth wide open.

Kurenai couldn't hold her laughter in any longer. She walked closer to Asuma, and cupped her husband's face between her hands. “You should see your face when Ryu asked the question. I wish I had a camera!”

“Oh… you must be loving every minute of my misery, aren't you?”

“I am,” she stated bluntly as she moved her hands down and put them on his shoulders. “Now, what makes you so angry? Don't tell me it's because of those bad things about Naruto that were written in the morning paper. I don't buy that. Those sport journalists are just being themselves. That's one fact that's never going to change.”

Asuma took a deep breath before blurting out his reasons, “It was not fair for them to keep blaming Naruto for our failure! I'm the one who gave that Uchiha kid a room to shoot! If you ask me, they should be putting the blame on me!”

“You can't mean that.”

“Yes, I can! And I am blaming myself!” Asuma started to shout but lowered his voice down instantly, when he saw his wife's expression. “Honey, when Sasuke still played for us, I saw him and Naruto play that trick so many times. I couldn't believe I'm still fooled by it.”

“Okay… you made a mistake, but it doesn't mean you have to take all the blame.”

“Guarding Sasuke was my responsibility. If I didn't leave my post then there's a good possibility that Sasuke would of failed to score and we would of still had a chance to win. But that one goal changed everything. Now, can you tell me that it wasn't my fault?”

“Asuma, what's done is done. As far as I'm concerned, the whole team should take the blame including the boy genius himself! He should never let Naruto take the penalty shot, not when Sasuke plays for the other team.”

“I'll tell him that,” said Asuma as he cracked a little smile. “And you're right about we should all take the blame. Too bad the press and the fans didn't see it that way. They'll all keep blaming Naruto.”

“Damn wanker!”

The bearded man was the one to let out a big laugh this time. He pulled his wife's body closer to his and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “Damn wanker!”


******************


“Come on, Yamashiro! There's still forty-five laps to go!”

Aoba who was running out of breath, could only curse his insane decision to accept Gai's offer to go for a jog earlier this morning. How could a person run one hundred laps and call it a jog? He wasn't trying to join any marathon competition for fucks sake!

“Gai… don't you think… we jogged... enough?” He asked between breaths. It was hard to talk at the time, but when Gai was running closer towards him, he started to wish he brought his sun-glasses because Gai's bright green jumpsuit was not exactly easy on the eyes.

“Not enough, my dear compatriot! We should go for at least one hundred laps for the sake of our beloved team! We need to get ready and fit for the new campaign!”

Fit my ass! For all I know I could end up dead!

“I agree… but… not even Ibiki… is crazy enough to put us… in this absurd training way of yours!”

“You think I should help Ibiki set the team's physical training program up?”

“NO!” Aoba shouted. That thought alone was terrifying. Bracing himself for the misery that about to come, Aoba got on his feet and started to run.

“Now, that's the spirit that I'm talking about!”

Oh, just shut the fuck up!


******************


For the last five minutes, Raidou had been trying to wake Genma up with not much success. He had tried the gentle approach by whispering in his boyfriend's ear; and the not too gentle approach, namely shook the said man's body continuously; but both ways were proved useless.

Now was the time for the harsh one. However, before Raidou managed to kick his life-partner right in the ass, those lovely dark eyes slightly opened and granted him with one of his alluring look.

Hot damn! But that man was sexy as hell!

Determined to keep his composure fully intact and not tempted to jump the younger man that was sprawled on the bed in front of him, Raidou decided to use his best stern face and voice, “Get off the bed… now!”

“Why~? It's still early,” Genma was starting to whine.

God have mercy… Not the whining too!

“Because we need to train your left leg just like Tsunade said.”

“Aww~… You know that old chick loves to exaggerate things. I know my body well. Trust me, my leg is fine~”

“Genma, stop acting like a child and think! In two weeks we're going to start training. We need to get fit!”

“Mmm…” was the only reply that came out of Genma's lips as he stretched his lithe body. That act caused the blanket shifted down and exposed skin in certain body part that made his lover's mouth suddenly dry.

Genma got himself up into a sitting position as sensuous as possible, for he knew Raidou watched his every move. Just like he knew, if he played his ball right, the goalie would forget all about training in a little while. “How about trying to get fit in my way? I assure you it'll be so much fun.”

Without warning, Raidou grasped Genma's face between his hands and crushed his lips with a savage kiss. In no time satisfied moans were starting to escape from the winger's throat as he cheered inwardly for his victory.

Unfortunately for Genma, his pleasure didn't last for long because Raidou had broken the kiss abruptly while keeping his big hands firmly in place, trapping Genma's face.

“Nice try, love, but you are not going to get away this time,” hissed Raidou, “Now… get off the bed.”

“No.”

God help him but at that time Raidou was so tempted to use force on Genma. He gritted his teeth instead, the taller guy forced himself to calm down. “Fine, have it your way. But when you get a hamstring pulled in training or shit… at the first match of the season, don't you dare come to me and whining!”

“Raidou~…”

Oh, that's it! The bastard had done it on purpose!

Furiously Raidou pulled Genma off the bed, made the younger man fall hard on the wood floor, and then stomped his way out of their bedroom. The last thing he heard before he slammed the door was another whine from Genma.

“Ow~…”

At least the whining was genuine this time.


******************


Kakashi was running.

He was running faster and faster, chasing the invisible figure in front of him, none other than his late father, Sakumo Hatake.

Quite the opposite of what everybody thought, having a legendary football player as a father was not as fun as it seem. It was more like a double edge sword. It surely got its own advantage but the bitterness was there as well.

Since he was a little boy, Kakashi had always travelled first class, always got the best treatment, and always got the best seat in every stadium to watch the best match, for the fact that he was the only child of the great Sakumo Hatake. He got the rare chance to meet with the best football player, the best manager, the best coach on the planet, for they all knew his father. He wore the best clothes, played with the best toys, and when he wanted to follow his father's steps to be a football star, he went to the best football academy for he was the little prince of Hatake.

However, the price for all the privilege was enormous. There was not a day passed by without people comparing him with the legendary Sakumo Hatake ever since the 14-year-old Kakashi Hatake stepped into the Konoha Football Academy.

Does he kick as good as his father? Does he cross as well as Sakumo? Does he dribble as fine as Hatake senior? Does he do free kicks as deadly as Konoha White Fang? Does he do this? Does he do that?

The questions were endless and they almost killed one of the most brilliant, talents in the football universe before it got the chance to bloom perfectly.

At his third year in the academy Kakashi was so ready to quit and gave up on his dream. The burden of the Hatake name on his shoulders seemed too heavy to handle, especially with the public judgment. They watched him so closely, and compared his every goddamn move with his old man! The `extra attention' was suffocating him and he had enough.

If it was not for one man, his coach and best friend, Minato Namikaze, Kakashi would quit football for good. Except that man refused to let the silver haired boy drown in his despair. Minato's encouraging words to the young winger before he passed away in the same year Kakashi got promoted to the first team were something that Kakashi would never forget. He cherished and treasured them as his way of football. Even more he treated them as a promise.


`Kakashi, don't listen to them. Just forget everything they say.'

`They won't let me forget. They make sure of it on a daily basis!'

`If you can't forget it then face it.'

`How!?'

`Easy. Show them you're better than Sakumo.'

`He was the legend of Konoha FC!'

`You'll be a bigger legend than him.'

`He booked more than 700 appearances for Konoha FC!'

`You'll break the record.'

`He made his Premiership debut when he was just 17 years old!'

`You'll make it before you reach 17 years of age.'

`He scored more than 200 league goals and he was not even the striker!'

`I know. He was a right winger, same like you. You'll score more.'

`He considered as the greatest captain Konoha FC ever got!'

`You'll be an even greater captain than him.'

`He won 9 Premiership titles and lifted the crown 5 times as a captain!'

`Then you just have to win more, right?'

`He…”

`I know who he was, son. He was a fantastic, great, brilliant football player. One in a million! But you know what? I know you too. I can tell winner material when I see it.'

`I…”

`Look, I have faith in you. The question is… do you have it?'


Now after 11 years, 119 goals and 5 Premiership titles (3 as captain) later, Kakashi was still running.

He was running faster and faster on his treadmill machine in the private gym of his house. And it seemed that he wouldn't be stopping any time soon.

He still got a score to settle, and a promise to keep.

--TBC--

Note:

I know that Kakashi is 13 years older than Naruto in the anime or manga. However, in this story I reduced the age difference.

Naruto and the rest of the Rookie 9 are 21 years old, while Kakashi and the rest of the jounins are 28 years old except for Raidou who is 30 years old.