Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Tale of Hyuuga Kaede ❯ Shinobi In St. Tropez ( Chapter 5 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

The Suicidal Friend

Sasuke's POV

(Country of Fire, 2006)

*Sasuke is eighteen-years-old

“She still what?!” Kaede said loudly. Iruka winced at the volume of Kaede's voice. “I said; Mayuri still won't come out of her room.” Iruka repeated patiently.

See, I have five people whom I consider friends. Iruka the peacemaker, Mayuri the drama queen, Saiyaka-sensei the loudmouth, Kakashi-sensei the pervert, and of course my best friend Kaede, who's been my girlfriend for a year now.

Mayuri has two siblings, Ino and Itsuo. Mayuri's ten-year-old brother, Itsuo, had died recently. Kakashi-sensei and I are no good at consoling people, so we both just stood awkwardly in the corner during the funeral while Saiyaka, Iruka, and Kaede were consoling a sobbing Mayuri.

And now, almost a month since Itsuo's funeral, Mayuri decides that she still won't come out of her God-forsaken room.

At first, everyone was concerned about her. Myself included, even though I'd never show it. But now it was apparent that Mayuri was just craving for attention again, as she always had this `nobody-ever-notices-me' syndrome.

Actually, Mayuri was noticeable enough with her wavy dark blonde hair and sky blue eyes. She was sun-tanned and long-legged. She's sweet and affectionate, but she was also quite unreasonable, sharp-tongued and stubborn to the point of semi-stupidity. What I liked bout Mayuri was that despite her attitude problems, I knew that she was a damn good friend, that she was always downright loyal and that she would never betray any of us.

She was never able to keep up with Kaede or me as a shinobi, but she was skilled enough in her own way. She's just too woe-is-me and insecure to notice it. I know it must be pretty difficult to be around Kaede too much. Insecurity can eat a person up whole.

I should know. I felt that with Itachi.

Anyway, I never offered Mayuri any advice or anything, but I knew she knew that I considered her my friend, and that I'd protect her if I ever needed to. I don't even like other people in general, so that should be enough for anyone lucky enough to be liked by me.

Kakashi-sensei, Kaede and I were just hanging around in my house when a worried Iruka had come to visit. He then informed us that Mayuri was still a being a stubborn ass.

I know that I could be a huge jerk at times - Mayuri makes it a point to inform me. But there was no one more unreasonable than Mayuri when she's in one of her `if-you-don't-give-me-what-I-fucking-want-I'll-throw-a-huge-tantrum' moods.

“That's it. This is getting absolutely ridiculous. Everyone pack enough things up to last a few days. We'll all meet at the dock. Kakashi, please inform the Hokage that we're leaving. Iruka, please tell Saiyaka-sensei about this.” Kaede said, a fire in her eyes. Uh-oh. “Oh, and don't forget to bring swimwear.” She added. Swimwear?!

If Kakashi-sensei and Iruka felt confused about Kaede's weird instructions, they didn't show it. Kakashi vanished with some white smoke and a little “poof”, while Iruka just nodded and walked off.

“And me? What am I supposed to do?” I asked Kaede, wrinkling my brow. “You're going to pack up some clothes, and then you're coming with me.” Kaede said, grinning. “What the hell is this all about?” I asked her, scowling. “I've found out a way to snap Mayuri out of it.” She answered. I raised both brows at that. “Just trust me.” Kaede said, kissing my lips shortly. “Now pack up.” She said, marching me into my own bedroom.

Kaede's really got a way with getting what she wanted.

I packed my clothes up grumpily, and then we headed over to the Hyuuga's. Kaede packed her own things, and then we went to the Yamanaka's.

We were both standing outside Mayuri's predictably locked door. “Mayuri! Open up!” “Go away, Kaede!” Mayuri's voice replied. “Don't be such a stupid bitch! Open the door!” Kaede yelled. “I said; go away, Kaede! Leave me alone!” Mayuri yelled back. “Open this door, Mayuri! Or I swear I'll - ”

“Step aside.” I snapped. I was getting mighty irritated at this little exchange. Kaede gaped at me. She's heard me speak to other people like that many times before, but I never spoke to her like that. Kaede stepped aside.

I backed up a little, then without further ado kicked Mayuri's door. It flew off its hinge with a deafening wooden crack.

“Now why didn't I think of that?” Kaede muttered as we entered Mayuri's room. The room was an utter mess. Okay, it's time to drag Mayuri out of this place. I backed off to a safe corner. This is Kaede's kinda thing, not mine. Mayuri was in bed, hiding under the blankets. Kaede yanked the blanket away and gasped. Blood. There was blood on the sheets, obviously form the wounds that Mayuri had. I noticed that the wounds were along her arms rather than on her wrists though. And the cuts were horizontal, not vertical. If she had really wanted to die, she should've slashed vertically, directly on the vein. She had been hurting herself, but she was lacked the courage to face death. She didn't really want to die, she just wants everyone to pay more attention to her.

Mayuri curled into a ball and was crying again. She cries a whole lot. I turned away, preferring not to look and wishing that I couldn't hear anything either. I'm uncomfortable around people that are crying, or showing any kind of excessive emotion, for that matter. Kaede rarely ever cries in front of anyone, and I myself would never cry in front of anyone. Only my parents and Itachi have ever seen my cry. And Kaede. She's seen my tears, eight years ago…

“Leave me alone… I just want to die.” “What are you talking about, Mayuri?! You don't know what you're saying! Pull yourself together, we're leaving!” Kaede said, her expression torn between pity and anger. “Go away! Both of you! You don't understand! It hurts! It hurts to go outside, it hurts to see people, and it hurts to see the sun! You don't feel my pain, you don't know what it's like to lose a person that you love!” Mayuri wailed, throwing pillows at Kaede, in desperate, fruitless attempts to make Kaede back off.

I clenched my fists in anger, reacting involuntarily to Mayuri's words. She has no right to say that we don't understand, because I understand damn well what it feels like to lose people that I love. After all, I'm the one who lost my whole clan. I was teetering on the edge of wanting to wring Mayuri's neck.

Kaede suddenly tore into Mayuri's closet, stuffing Mayuri's clothes and underwear into a bag. Kaede took something out of her pocket. I recognized the container. It was Hinata's herbal salve, an ointment that she made to treat wounds. Kaede grabbed Mayuri's arms and slathered the salve all over her wounds. Amazingly enough, the wounds were already starting to heal.

Kaede and I looked at each other, and her eyes were saying “Could you please carry her out of here?” I replied with a look that said, “Do I have a choice?” and lifted a literally kicking and screaming Mayuri off her filthy, bloodied bed.

When we got to the dock, Iruka, Saiyaka-sensei and Kakashi-sensei were all there already. Outside of the shinobi countries, technology is actually already very high. It's just that we ninjas like to keep things simple, and we refuse to use cowardly weapons such as guns and rifles. Sometimes though, technology still finds its way to the shinobi countries. But at least we aren't as technology-dependent as the rest of Japan was.

The Japanese who lived out of the shinobi countries are forbidden to come here, but we ninjas are sometimes sent out on missions into modern Japan and beyond. In disguise, of course.

As we all silently boarded the ship, I pondered again how I got myself into such an undesirable situation.

I'm not a very good friend. Because when it all comes down to it, it's save your own ass. Every man for his fucking self. I have a goal, and I must not perish until I achieve my vengeance. I'll kill Itachi and revive my clan, and I'm ready to die in the attempt.

The only person I'd voluntarily stick my neck out for is Kaede. That should be pretty obvious by now.

Time crawled by and we finally got to the airport. Jesus, I feel sick.

I hate flying.

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

Flying Limo

Kakashi's POV

(Country of Fire, 2006)

*Kakashi is twenty-four-years-old

Today, none of us were ninjas.

We were all dressed as civilians, assuming different identities, blending perfectly with the rest of the plane's passengers. Thanks to the fact that the Hyuugas' were tremendously wealthy, all of us were seated at the first class cabin.

I was wearing a Versace suit, my mask, and dark Emporio Armani shades to cover my eyes. Everyone was oh-so-discreetly staring at me when we first got here, obviously thinking that I was someone famous, trying hard not to be recognized. With me was Saiyaka, my manager. She had her deep green hair in a single braid, and had barely-there glasses on, both to subdue the intense violet of her eyes and for effect. She was serious and polished, wearing a light-colored blouse, and a beige blazer with a matching skirt. She was carrying a briefcase with my important files inside, and a wafer-thin laptop to keep track of everything.

Iruka was the son of some obscure business tycoon, wearing a crisp polo shirt, slacks, and leather shoes, looking like he fell out of an ad for Calvin Klein. With him was Mayuri, his sulky heiress fiancée. Mayuri's sexy dark blonde waves were left loose, her light blue eyes red from crying. She was wearing a huge diamond on her finger, and all the other rich-ass passengers were almost certainly thinking “Tiffany's? Bulgari?” She was wearing a simple but evidently designer gray sheath, and elegant silver pumps.

Sasuke and Kaede were the most casual. They were a good-looking couple, holding hands and both dressed-down in Roberto Cavalli jeans and sneakers that cost more than all of an average person's regular sneakers put together. Sasuke was most likely a male model, some rock star, or both. The black leather jacket contrasted with his alabaster-white skin, his cotton shirt snug enough to show off his toned upper body, and his brooding expression was just begging to be captured on film. His blue gray eyes showed lack of sleep, obviously from his hectic schedule. Gorgeous even as she was make-up free was Kaede, the rock star's girlfriend. Her shampoo-commercial worthy locks were of a black so luxurious that it could only be natural. When she took off the large Gucci shades that she was wearing, everyone was most likely mentally debating whether or not her eyes were for real. To the disappointment of many, when she rubbed her eyes it became apparent that she wasn't wearing colored contacts. She was wearing a tight-fitting baby tee and a face that said, “Don't hate me just `cause I'm beautiful.”

I abandoned looking out the window and made a quick check of everyone on the plane. Beside me, Saiyaka was looking relatively bored. She was checking for dirt on her fingernails and was glancing at Mayuri every once in a while. Iruka and Mayuri were on the seats adjacent to ours, and Sasuke and Kaede's seats were in front of theirs. Sasuke was looking a bit on the green side. He always has not been very comfortable in planes. Beside Sasuke was Kaede, looking perfectly at ease with her surroundings, as if she did this everyday. Iruka was looking a bit stressed, as if he were worried that Mayuri would have another mood swing and start bawling her eyes out again. I wouldn't wanna be him right now. Beside Iruka was Mayuri, who looked like she finally fell into some sort of depressed resignation. She insisted on the window seat out of sheer brattiness, but she wasn't even looking out the window.

As if sensing my gaze, Kaede stared back at me. She gave me a reassuring smile, as if to tell me not to worry, because everything was going to be just fine. I gave her a little smile in return. Satisfied by my reply, she buried her face in Sasuke's neck, and then turned his indifferent face to her direction to press her lips to his.

Startled out of his reverie, Sasuke's eyes widened and then fluttered shut as he relaxed into Kaede's kiss. He cupped her face in his hands and kissed back.

I cringed inwardly and looked away. I've been trying to convince myself for quite a while now that this is nothing. I'm not a teenager to be so preoccupied with a stupid infatuation.

At least that's what I think it is.

I've never been the one to take something that's already taken, no matter how much I want it. In this case it's Kaede, who already belongs to Sasuke.

Truth be told, Kaede seems perfect for Sasuke. Kaede's the type that's freedom loving and independent, a girl who doesn't need to be taken care of. Which is good for Sasuke, because he could hardly take care of himself, much less another person.

Kaede has a really God-awful reputation, she's labeled as many things, and admittedly some of those things are true. Like the fact that she's a big flirt, a tad bit narcissistic, that she parties too hard, drinks too much, and has an inability to pay attention to anything for a very long time. Kaede's got a whole lot of flaws, but what most people don't know is that Kaede just has this effect on people. She changes the people close to her without knowing it. She makes Sasuke less sullen, Iruka less spineless, Mayuri less snobbish, and Saiyaka less inconsiderate. And me… Kaede makes me feel like should I risk getting hurt all over again, it would be worth it. Like I could love another person again.

Preferably her, of course. But I don't need two Sharingans to know that that's impossible.

Ugh. I'm starting to know what Sasuke must be feeling. We've been traveling for seemingly endless hours, and the passengers are all slipping in and out of their travel-induced slumber.

Right according to plan, we were the only passengers left after three stops.

We got down on an airport and transferred to a smaller, faster, and of course, private, jet. “Ms. Hyuuga?” The pilot asked Kaede before we boarded. “Correct.” “Where to?” “Have you not been informed? To France, take the quickest route.” Kaede said curtly. “Yes, Ms. Hyuuga.”

“France?” I whispered questioningly into Kaede's ear as we boarded. It seems that I was the only one who was awake enough to hear our destination. “Yes.” Kaede whispered back, winking and pecking my cheek. Or rather, my mask.

I subtly checked for Sasuke's reaction. Normally, Sasuke wouldn't like that that much. He was in his usual filthy mood, but he was either too sleepy to notice, or too good at hiding what he goddamned felt. And although Sasuke was good at hiding his emotions, right now I'd guess it was the former.

I took my shades off as soon as we boarded the jet. I was growing increasingly tired of everything being dark. I looked at Kaede and tried to fathom what her plan was. I knew from the determined set of her mouth that she was convinced that she could open Mayuri's eyes and set her right. Kaede was the type of friend that would stick with you no matter how crappy you're being. No doubt she was about to do something outrageous but hopefully effective.

After a while, Saiyaka, Iruka, and Sasuke all fell asleep. Mayuri wasn't asleep, but she might as well be, since she was just staring blankly off into space. Almost inevitably, my eyes met Kaede's again. We both stood up and moved to the seats at the back to be able to sit next to each other.

“I love this thing, it's like a flying limo.” Kaede said, grinning at me. “How so?” I asked her, raising an amused brow. “It's got everything a limo has, including this microwave and the mini bar.” “Hmmm, interesting.” I replied, looking intently at her face. Then, without further words needed, we both dived for the mini bar. We laughed and pawed at each other, trying to get a good view of what alcoholic beverage to get tipsy on.

“Stop that! You'll ruin my designer jeans, these are Cavallis!” Kaede kidded, trying to push me out of the way. “Ne? You'll ruin my suit. This is a Versace.” I said mock seriously, pushing back at her. We both howled with laughter again, enjoying acting like kids.

“Hey, what's going on back there?” Saiyaka's groggy voice asked. Saiyaka has always been a light sleeper. She walked over to see for herself exactly what Kaede and I were laughing so raucously about, and raised an eyebrow when she saw us entangled in each other. “Ahh, drinks. I haven't had a decent drink in weeks. What have you got?” Saiyaka asked, brightening up.

I let Kaede elbow me out of the way as she landed conveniently on top of me anyway. Kaede dictated to Saiyaka what drinks were available. “There's Perrier, Sprite, Pepsi, Coke - ” “Feh. Aren't there any alcoholic drinks?” “Well, we've got Heineken, Grey Goose, Stolichnaya, Tequila Rose, Jose Cuervo Gold, Jack Daniels - ” “Excellent.” I piped up from under Kaede, batting her hand away to grab the bottle of Jack Daniels.

Kaede laughed and got off me, handing me a glass. “Is that all? No sake? What kind of crummy foreigners stock that bar anyway?” Saiyaka said, wearing an ugly look. “I knew you'd say that sooner or later, Saiyaka-sensei. There's Juyondai sake. Come and get it.” Kaede said, waving the bottle teasingly under Saiyaka's nose.

“Gimme that.” Saiyaka said hoarsely, seizing the bottle of Juyondai and opening it. She brought the bottle to her lips and started drinking straight from it. It was quite a sight really, such a seemingly prim and proper woman in a beige ensemble, drinking Juyondai straight from its bottle. I shook my head at the alcohol-starved Saiyaka, and went on to pouring the whiskey into my glass.

Mayuri was still staring dazedly off to space. “Maybe we should ask Mayuri if she wants a drink.” I said, voicing out my thoughts. “No way. She might just say yes. She's got such a low tolerance for alcohol. You want her to throw up on these Scandinavian leather seats?” Saiyaka said, scoffing at the idea. I chuckled. How true. “Point taken.”

“Ice?” Kaede offered, holding out a silver ice bucket and clear plastic tongs. “Thanks.” I said, dropping ice into my drink. Perfect. Jack Daniels, on the rocks. Kaede dumped some ice into her Tequila Rose as well, and then she raised her glass. “Cheers, Kakashi.” “Cheers.” I replied with a smile, slipping my mask off, clinking my glass with hers and taking a sip of my drink.

“Okay, that's enough. Nobody here can afford to be drunk.” I said after my third glass, snatching Kaede's empty glass and Saiyaka's half-empty bottle of Juyondai. Saiyaka shrugged, got up and went back to her seat to doze off. “I'd better get back to my seat too. Sasuke will get grumpy if he finds me gone when he wakes up.” Kaede said, sighing dramatically. “You know him too well.” I remarked. “Well, so do you.” Kaede shot back, grinning and heading back to her seat.

As far as I knew, we were the only two people close enough to Sasuke to actually know him at all.

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

Lucky Me

Saiyaka's POV

(Country of Fire, 2006)

*Saiyaka is twenty-six-years-old

“Finally!” I said, as we all got off the jet. I tried to carry my own luggage, but a man stepped forward and took my bags from me. Four men were carrying all of our luggage. “Hey, I could carry that on my own - ” “Saiyaka. Let them be. Nobody carries their own luggage around here.” Kakashi said into my ear, interrupting me. I looked around and saw that he was right. Not surprising, since all of the planes landing in this certain airport are PJs. You know, private jets.

We were ushered into a stretch limo, all of us fitting just fine. When they say stretch, they mean it. I watched the world pass by through the darkly tinted windows. Before I knew it, we were at our destination. Wherever that is.

“Wait, where the hell are we anyway?” I asked Kakashi, the person nearest to me. “France.” Was his succinct answer. “Where in France? This doesn't look like Paris.” Iruka remarked. “We're in St. Tropez.” Kaede said, answering everybody's questions. “St. Tropez? It's high season. How are we supposed to get rooms?” “I've already reserved rooms. We won't have any problems.” “Oh… Of course.” I replied with a frown. It was almost impossible to get rooms in St. Tropez during the summer without reservations.

“Okay, guys. First we get to the hotel. Then, we dump our things in our rooms. And then, one person could volunteer to come with Mayuri and me.” Kaede announced. “Where to?” Kakashi asked. “It's a secret.” “Do I have any choice in this matter at all?” Mayuri piped up morosely. “Nope.” Kaede answered cheerfully. “I thought so.” Mayuri muttered.

I shaded my eyes. God, it's hot under this predictably blue Riviera sky. “There's the hotel.” Kaede said, acting all tour-guidey as we climbed the stone staircase that ends on the highest hill of St. Tropez. Fantastic view. Ooh, I like it. “What hotel is that again?” “Hotel Byblos.”

I drank in the sight of the hotel's spacious tranquility as we walked on. Directly ahead are stuccoed, shuttered buildings in bold Provencal shades of gold and apricot, coral and ochre, their sloping tiled roofs topped with little chimneys. Standing flat against each other and looking very much like the houses that line the St. Tropez waterfront, they form the backdrop to a grand patio where lantana bushes and spreading palms surround a free-form swimming pool.

An emergent platform that divides the pool boasts a stylized mosaic of Europa and the bull, the Greek myth of abduction and seduction, which is the hotel's motif reappearing as onyx statue, in mosaics and bas reliefs. Under a bright red awning, tables are set for alfresco dining. An expansive octagon-shaped lounge with circular bar is just beyond. The distant hills of Provence are visible in the crystalline light. So are the rooftops of St. Tropez all the way down to the harbor.

Our luggage was passed on to the bellboys, who smiled and greeted us in French. At the front desk, the clerk who looked more like a movie star than a front desk clerk also smiled and greeted us, this time in English. “Hyuuga Kaede. I've already reserved three suites.” Kaede said with a smile that could make the most insufferable of men melt into putty.

There are six of us but there are only three rooms. Which means that I'm going to have to share a room with somebody. Kaede's too messy, generally lovable, with a personality that takes some getting used to. She likes making herself feel at home, which means she scatters her things around. Sasuke's too depressing. I love the boy, but even back when he was my student he always acted like something snuck up his ass and died there. Mayuri's too fucked up right now. I'm damn tired of fixing her, so somebody else should do it this time. So the best would-be roommates are Iruka and Kakashi. Iruka is almost impossible to dislike. He's thoughtful and kind. But sometimes, he's just too nice. Being with someone so nice makes me appear even more unpleasant than I actually am. Kakashi is good company, since he's laidback and he knows when to have fun and when to be serious. Most of the time he's just easygoing and good-humored, plus he doesn't snore.

“Ah, yes. Ms. Hyuuga. Let me see… You'll have rooms 101, 102, and 103.” The man said, handing Kaede three card keys. “Welcome to Hotel Byblos, and enjoy your stay.” He said, smiling again and greeting the next guest.

I don't know if I'm the only one who notices everything around here. Kakashi is evidently taken with Kaede, but he is not doing a damn thing about it. And that's a good thing, because Kaede is so clearly in love with Sasuke, and although Sasuke tries so very hard not to make it too visible, he's head over heels in love with Kaede too. Iruka has zero interest in Kaede, and has been in love with Mayuri for quite a time now. Except since Mayuri locked herself up in her room, he already completely gave up on her. Even Iruka's seemingly unlimited patience dried up on Mayuri. Mayuri, like almost every other kunoichi, myself not included thank you very much, has a crush on the brooding Sasuke. She's beyond disturbed, because all she sees is the fact that it would never cross Sasuke's messed-up mind to ditch Kaede for her. She's not done anything about that though. Fortunately, the girl knows when she's licked.

I'm glad I've no part in their muddled little love web. It just gets a tad bit annoying to watch. It makes me want to scream, “Kakashi, either admit what you feel for Kaede or find someone else to like! There are a lot of women out there, and it's not like you can't make them fall right over for you without even trying. Kaede, open your pretty eyes! Mayuri has a frikkin' crush on Sasuke! Sasuke, it's okay to be in love, don't be so fuckin' uptight and in-denial about it! Everyone knows that you love Kaede anyway, so stop trying to act like you don't! Iruka, it's not your goddamned fault that you gave up on Mayuri! Stop beating yourself up, you're the only one who has enough tolerance for that hopeless girl! And you, Mayuri, let it go! Sasuke's love for Kaede has nothing to do with you, and it's not some contest with Kaede that you lost! And most of all, why won't everyone just forget about everything else for once and look at the view?! It's fabulous!!!”

“There's no way I'll be roommates with anyone but Iruka.” Mayuri declared as we climbed up the stairs. It was a given that Kaede and Sasuke would be saying together. “Okay, then I'll stay with Kakashi.” I said, glancing at the said ninja. He only shrugged, not seeming to care less. “By the way, I've only managed to get two rooms with separate beds. One of the suites only has one huge bed. Anyone want to take it?” Kaede asked, holding out the keys to room 101. “Only you and Sasuke are blessed with coupledom here. You two take it.” I said with a smirk. Sasuke's face reddened, bowing his head to try and hide his blush with his hair. I fought back the urge to grin. Sasuke's adorable when he blushes. “Fine.” Kaede said unperturbedly, handing out the other keys, one to me and one to Iruka.

“Guess I'm stuck with you.” I told Kakashi as he opened the door to our room. “Yeah. Lucky you.” He replied, scanning the beautiful room. Our luggage was already there, waiting for us.

I tried imagining being stuck with anyone else and shuddered.

Indeed. Lucky me.

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

Pure Shores

Kaede's POV

(Country of Fire, 2006)

*Kaede is seventeen-years-old

I was dressed up and ready to go when Sasuke came out of the bathroom in a white Hotel Byblos robe. He eyed the enormous orgy-sized bed as if he were a Jew who's just found the Promise Land and flopped down on it. I smiled and lay down on the bed next to him.

“Sasuke, I take it that you're not volunteering to go with me and Mayuri. It's okay, you just stay here. I know how much you hate flying, you must be worn out.” I said into his chest, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Who's coming with you then?” “Kakashi.” “Hn.”

“Hey. Look at me. What are you thinking?” I asked him, knowing what he would say, wondering why I asked at all. “Nothing.” He replied, although his blue gray eyes were now trained on my face.

See? Typical Sasuke.

I brought my lips to his and felt his arms go around me. I ran my hands through his soft hair as he kissed me back, his tongue sweeping into my mouth. I pressed my body closer to his, loving the feel and the scent of him, two things I knew so well. He pulled back, his breathing ragged. “You'd better go.” “I know. I love you.” I said, my eyes not leaving his. Something indecipherable flashed across his handsome features, then after hesitating he said, “I love you too.”

Satisfied, I got up, smoothed my clothes and hair, and then made for the door.

I rapped my fist on room 102's door, getting ready to drag Mayuri out if she won't come out on her own accord. Someone's hands went on my shoulders as I took a breath to yell at Mayuri to come out. I turned around. “Kakashi?” “No need to yell. There's a better way of getting in.” he said, calm as always. “Iruka? Could you open the door?” Kakashi called out, knocking insistently.

“Alright. Wait a sec.” went Iruka's voice. Oh, I see. Nice. “You're sneaky, you.” I whispered to Kakashi. “Only when I need to be.” He smiled. Hmm… I'll keep that in mind. Iruka opened the door, looking surprised to see me there. “Hello, Iruka.” I said, pushing past him to get into the room. “You cheated.” He said. “Sorry, man.” Kakashi said, his amusement plain in his voice.

“How did you get in?” Mayuri groaned as she saw me. “We cheated.” I said, grinning at Kakashi. “They did.” Iruka confirmed, looking sheepish. I dragged Mayuri up from the couch. “Dress up. We're leaving.” I told her, pushing her to the bathroom. Mayuri heaved a sigh but obliged anyway. “Alright, alright. You win. I'm coming with you. Whatever.” She muttered, grabbing some clothes and closing the bathroom's door.

Later on, Kakashi, Mayuri and I were walking towards the nearest helipad. “Any minute now…” I muttered as I took a peak at Mayuri's Bulgari watch. I don't wear watches, and neither does the always-tardy Kakashi.

I heard the noise of the helicopter before I felt the artificial wind made by the helicopter's propellers swirl violently around us. It landed on the helipad and a voice called out “Ready for take-off, Ms. Hyuuga!”

“Well, you heard the guy. Let's go!” I told Kakashi and Mayuri, running towards the chopper. “Flying again! I'm so sick of flying! I've spent too much time with my ass parked on a plane's seat!” Mayuri complained over the noise, but she ran with me anyway.

“It's my first time in one of these things.” Kakashi admitted as he sat down, looking out the window. I looked down as we ascended as well, fascinated as I watched the houses and buildings fade into miniscule squares. Mayuri was covering her eyes, muttering incoherently as we flew over St. Tropez. I gasped as I saw Plage de Grimaud's endless blue, the waters sparkling under the bright sunlight. “Mayuri! Look down, it's beautiful!” I said, shaking her. She reluctantly put her hands on her lap, took a breath and glanced down.

“It is beautiful. Amazing… Pure shores.” Mayuri breathed. “Pure shores. That's a song, isn't it?” Kakashi said, thinking aloud. “Yeah, by All Saints.” I replied.

“I'm moving,

I'm coming

Can you hear, what I hear?

It's calling you my dear,

Out of reach…

(Take me to my beach)

I can hear it, calling you

I'm coming, not drowning

Swimming closer to you.”

I sang, glancing at Kakashi and laughing. I don't sing too well. I sound okay, but the one with the great voice is Mayuri, who was not in the mood to be singing. “We're on the requested location, madame.” The pilot said. Okay, it's time.

I pulled Mayuri up from her seat and held her to the chopper's door. “What are you doing?! You're going to kill me!” she shrieked. “We're hovering over some seriously deep water. You don't have a parachute, and there are sharks. You don't swim too well, and the sharks'll smell your blood before you get too far because you're bleeding.” “That's the point! What the fuck are you doing?! Let me go! Waittaminit - I'm not bleeding!” Mayuri babbled, hysterical. I took out my kunai and pricked her thumb. “You are now.” “You're out of your mind! Kakashiiii! Help me!” she wailed miserably, trying to twist around to look at Kakashi.

“You said you wanted to die! You tried to kill yourself! Now I'm giving you the chance! Jump! You wanna die right?! Jump!” I shouted at her. She whimpered helplessly, framing her arms on the sides of the chopper's entrance. “No, I don't want to die!” “Yes, you do! You said it yourself! You put everyone through all that trouble when you were acting all suicidal! Iruka dragged himself through hell all worried about you! Jump, dammit!” “No, please. No, no, no…” she said, now crying.

“Some people jump, thinking that they could reach the shore no matter what. Sometimes they make it, sometimes they don't. Worse are the people who don't jump at all, spending their lives thinking that if they do they'd crack their heads open on some rocks and die. Life is about taking chances, because if you don't jump you don't live at all. You'll never know until you've tried it.” I told her. I could feel Kakashi observing us silently, not wanting to butt in.

“That's true, but some things are still for sure. If you succeeded in taking your own life, it's all over. Nothing dramatic, romantic, or glorious about it. Just as sure as the fact that if you jump right now, you'd die - if you didn't come out of your fucking room, you'll put everything you've ever worked for to waste, all your hopes, dreams, goals, ideals… Snap out of it, Mayuri. You've got all you'd ever need right here, with your family, with us. Itsuo wouldn't have wanted you to ruin yourself just because he's gone. He'd have wanted you to be happy. Just as we want you to be happy…” I said, my voice trailing off, broken by my own tears. I meant what I said. Sometimes, Mayuri's just too much. She's tough to handle, but I love her. I love her and she knows it. She just never interprets anything in the right way.

I pulled her back in for a hug, both of us crying. “Goddamned bitch, I hate it when you're right.” Mayuri said, sniffing through her tears, half-laughing half-crying. “And they all lived happily ever after.” Kakashi said with a sarcastic edge to his voice, smiling wryly underneath his mask. “We are so going to come back to this beach with everyone later.” Mayuri said happily.

“Back to the Byblos.” I told the pilot, smiling contentedly. “Yes, ma'am.” He said, chuckling.

I gave Kakashi a look, and he gave me a thumbs up. Mayuri was back to being her normal self.

Well, as normal as she could ever be anyway.

**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

White-eyed Surprise

Iruka's POV

(Country of Fire, 2006)

*Iruka is eighteen-years-old

I paced around the suite, wondering what was taking Mayuri and the others so long. I sighed and switched off the television, where a man was rambling on in rapid French.

I've long since given up on trying to get Mayuri to love me back. Now if only I could stop worrying about her…

I tensed as I heard the door opening. “Iruka!” Mayuri squealed, throwing her arms around my neck. I held her off and wrinkled my brow, confused. “Mayuri? Are you all right? What did Kaede and Kakashi do to you?” “Nothing! I'm great! Better than ever! Go and change into your trunks, we're going to Plage de Grimaud!” “We're going to Plage de what?” “Never mind. Just dress up!” Mayuri said, attacking the closet and grabbing her bikini before retreating into the bathroom.

I get the feeling that I missed out on something in here.

“Geez.” I muttered, grabbing my forest green Burberry board shorts with the leaf print, stripping and putting them on. The last time I checked, there was only one Mayuri. I got a black shirt and slipped it on too, tucking Oakley shades into my pocket.

Mayuri came out of the bathroom in her tiny pink Pucci congo-print bikini, clutching a fuchsia sundress in one hand, also Pucci. “How's my disguise?” “Perfect.” I smiled. She grinned and put the sundress on, slipping on her Havaianas flip-flops. She looked like a jet setting blonde. I wouldn't have guessed that she was a shinobi. All these designer labels are completely for show. We have to blend in with the rich crowd here, or everybody'll be suspicious.

“Ne, Mayuri? Did you bring sunscreen? I forgot mine.” Saiyaka said, popping into the room. Saiyaka was in a purple DKNY bikini, with D&G shades pushed up in her long dark green hair. “Yep. Kaede packed my bags. I got lots. Stuff it in your bag, I haven't got one.” Mayuri said, tossing a bottle of Nivea SPF 40 sun block at Saiyaka. “Thanks.” Saiyaka said, putting the sunscreen into her waterproof Hermes beach bag.

“Saiyaka, have you seen my slippers?” Kakashi said, entering our room as well. Kakashi was wearing his lemon yellow Tommy Hilfiger board shorts with the shark print and a dove gray shirt. “Under your bed. I accidentally kicked `em there.” Saiyaka replied, brushing her hair into a high ponytail. “Okay. Be right back.” Kakashi said, exiting.

“Everybody ready?” Kaede asked as she entered the room with Sasuke in tow. Kaede was in a white Eres bikini, her large Gucci shades, and black Juicy Couture sweatpants. Sasuke was wearing black Dior shorts and his usual dispassionate face. He was holding his white Armani sweatpants in one hand. He put them on and absently toyed with the drawstrings. Kaede and Sasuke did that whole black and white thing down to perfection, whether they did it on purpose or not.

“I'm back - hmmm, now that we're all here anyway, I've got something to say.” Kakashi said as he returned, glancing around at our faces. “Okay, go ahead.” Kaede said. “I'm sure you all know that Tsunade-sama wouldn't just let us go here without a mission, right?” “Yeah.” We chorused. “Well, she did give us a mission. It's high time that I tell everyone what it is. Here's the summary: We're supposed to bring someone important back to Konoha. She didn't say who it was. This person went here on a supposedly short vacation with three bodyguards. Since this person apparently liked it here in St. Tropez and is refusing to return to Konoha even when he needs to, we are to drag him back whether he likes it or not. Obviously, in a place like this to ambush him is out of the question. So we're going to meet the bodyguards one by one, and they'll be the ones to tip us off when the person's alone and safe to drag back to Konoha.”

“I see… But where are we going to meet the first guy?” I asked, the information processing in my head. I should have known this wasn't just some cheer-Mayuri-up vacation. “Conveniently enough, we're going to meet the first guy on Plage de Grimaud.” “How the hell would we know who he is? There'll be a whole lot of people on that beach.” Saiyaka asked, looking cross. “The guy'll be wearing pink CK board shorts.” “There might be other guys in pink CK board shorts.” “Sure, but one of us is supposed to ask him who he's with and he's supposed to say `cuckoo' in return.” “Ahh…” Saiyaka said, running out of arguments.

“Alright. Let's do this.” Mayuri said rubbing her hands together. The sapphire sparkle had already returned to her eyes, and the enthusiasm was back in her voice. Once again, I wondered what Kaede and Kakashi have done to her.

Plage de Grimaud was magnificent, the epitome of a picturesque postcard-perfect beach. It was indeed filled with people, a lot of whom were obviously celebrities or just plain rich. We brought beach towels with us, since lounge chairs were apparently out of season.

I immediately felt uncomfortable as I noticed that a lot of women were looking at me as I took my shirt off. They were staring at Sasuke as well when he slid out of his sweatpants. I saw that Kakashi was getting the most stares though. After all, being an ANBU once upon a time must have done things to his body. Tsunade had temporarily erased Kakashi's ANBU tattoo and the scar on his eye. He was wearing colored contact lenses to cover his Sharingan eye.