267Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. The only thing that I own is my original character and few other characters.
A/N: Sorry for not updating in a very long time. You see, I had writer's block and I didn't really have time to update. I was also busy doing things in my life. All I can tell you is that I will not be updating soon, but I promise you that I will continue to write this story whenever I have the time.
SPOILER: I will be using the Yondaime's real name.
This chapter will be in Aya's mother's POV. So do not get confused. Iruka's parent's names were made up by me. I hope you will continue to read this story. Thanks to all the reviewers for the great reviews. Thanks to my beta-reader XoXSilverDragonXoX! Anyway, ENJOY!
Italicized sentences – Thoughts
"This is a dairy… She kept one from the first day she came to our world."
"My mother?!" I was surprised.
He nodded, "Hai. This will explain everything. It will help you understand the situation right now and maybe other things that you've always wanted to know about our father."
"I can finally uncover the past of my mom…and find out how she met my father." I quickly opened the dairy's book and slowly began reading.
Chapter 20 – Another chance at life
Dear Diary,
A lot of things have happened to me since I've come to this world. Crazy, I know. Landing in a world of ninjas? Even crazier! I don't know how I got here but I have a theory. It was a stupid theory, but a theory nonetheless. So now I'm going to tell you exactly what had occurred before I arrived here. Perhaps you can lend some insight as well.
It was August 6, 2005.
It was a cloud day – I remember because I can recall standing in front of my home and cloud watching. I was a just-turned 17 year old who was just a junior in high school. Summer vacation had just begun.
I looked at my watch, noting that it was 5:30 pm. Time to go to work! Work… ha! I work as a bartender at a local bar. It's amusing because technically, I'm still underage.
Of course, they would've never hired a 17 year old. So I told a little white lie. Just a little one. It took quite a bit of convincing too. It's been two months since I've started. I bet you're wondering why I'm working so early. Well, some of us need to pay rent. Yep, I live alone, in an apartment. I found the place just last year.
When I passed an entrance to a park, I noticed there were lots of couples strolling through. They were probably cherry blossom viewing. I also saw several little kids, some running towards adults – presumably their parents. A mother had a handkerchief, and was wiping a small child's cheeks free of dirt.
It kind of pissed me off. Ignoring it, I continued to walk. "Happy families? Don't make me laugh!" I thought angrily.
My thoughts drifted towards that person and a voice was suddenly yelling at me, "It's all your fault!" It was all in my head.
The words continued to echo in my mind until I finally snapped. "Shut up! Leave me alone!" I shouted aloud.
I froze when I noticed that other people were now staring at me, probably thinking that I was crazy. And that rubbed me the wrong way as well. "What are you looking at?!" I grumbled. Hurriedly they continued doing whatever they had been doing, before stopping to stare at the 'crazy' girl. I shook my head and continued to walk, picking up my pace.
I shouldn't have thought too much. It would only cause me more pain if I think. A pain that time would never heal. I've got to stop thinking!
I've got to focus on my job. I can't have myself making any mistakes while at work. I slowed down, now recognizing the familiar brown building.
Once I had maneuvered myself into the building and into the girl's locker room, I quickly changed into the uniform. It was a white wing tipped shirt with a five button black vest as well as black pants and a matching grey tie. Tying my long blue hair into a ponytail, and applying some quick make-up, I stared at my own reflection. I don't usually wear make-up because it's troublesome, but with this job it really helped to make me look older and mature.
Shuffling through the doors which lead to the front-end of the bar, I slipped behind the counter and served my first cocktail. It was a relatively quick process. I make the drinks; customers slid by and picked them up. Common sense, really.
And of course, being at a bar means that I would get those flirty guys; a lot of them. All I can do is ignore them and hope they would eventually leave me alone. It also helped to keep my anger in check. This was a good thing. Why? Because last time I lost my temper it almost cost me my job. I had punched a guy for groping my butt. So this time I need to keep myself out of trouble.
"Stop it!" A girl's voice rose above the music. I glanced to my right and saw three guys surrounding a red-haired woman sitting at a table.
"Come on, don't be so mean. Let's have some fun together!" One of the guys gripped her arm.
"No! I don't want to! Leave me alone!" The woman slapped his hand away.
"Don't be a prude; we'll have a good time together! Come on!" He coaxed slowly.
"I already said no. I mean it!"
I blinked slowly. Why am I even watching this? I'm supposed to be working. This situation had absolutely nothing to do with me.
"Come on baby! You'll enjoy it!" The asshole touched her leg. Out of the corner of my eye I saw her push his hand away. "Stop it or I'll scream!"
Ignore them. I told myself. It has nothing to do with me!
The group of guys laughed. "Yeah right! Who's going to help you, huh? Let's go now!" The tallest of the group grabbed her wrist.
That's when the screaming started. Ha ha suckers! So she wasn't just bluffing. "NO! LET ME GO! HELP ME!" She screamed.
Not listening. My eye twitched.
"SOMEBODY HELP ME!"
… Don't pay attention to them.
"PLEASE HELP ME!"
I bit my lip softly. Oh man, I can't believe I'm going to do this.
Jumping over the counter, I grabbed a near by beer bottle and stalked up to the guy gripping the red-head's arm and smashed said bottle into said guy's head.
"Crap!" His arms rose immediately to assess the damage. "What the hell?" He looked up, eyes unfocused, not realizing I was going to do something a little worse. Snatching a nearby chair, I smashed that into his head as well. Dropping what was left of the chair legs to the floor, I watched satisfactorily as his face hit the wooden floor with a crack.
The other two guys only gaped at me and the girl immediately ducked behind me. I met their gaze head on and as if suddenly waking up the two heaved their fallen friend up. "Let's get out of here!" The three disappeared through the doorway.
Damn right they better leave.
"MISUMI YUMIKO!" A voice bellowed.
Oh crap…
I slowly turned and saw my boss, face completely red with anger. I had a feeling I knew what he was going to say next.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! NOW NO ONE WILL COME TO MY BAR BECAUSE OF YOU! I WANT YOU OUT OF HERE! YOU'RE FIRED!" He shoved me, as well as the other woman towards the back door and slammed it as soon as we were out.
"Oh great, now I've lost my job." I sighed, removing my necktie. Could this day get any worse?
"I'm very sorry, it's entirely my fault."
Now I need to find another job. Geez, how troublesome!
"Ano, I want to thank you for saving me. I'm forever grateful! Arigatou!" She bowed.
"Don't get the wrong idea; I wasn't going to save you in the first place."
"Really? Then why did you save me?" She asked curiously.
"I don't know… I just did." Now I'm beginning to wish I didn't save you… my precious job!
"Doesn't that mean you're a good person?" She beamed at me. I snorted
Good person? Now in this lifetime!
"Ano… I may sound rude for asking this question but you don't seem happy. Is something wrong?" I gaped at her. Is this girl serious? What kind of person would be happy after losing a job?
Besides… not happy? Ha! I've never been happy in my entire life. Besides, why does she care? It's not like she's my friend or anything. "That's none of your business now, is it?" I snapped. She jolted.
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to offend… It's just that you looked so lonely. I'm sorry for angering you." She glanced away sheepishly.
I glanced at her. She was fidgeting and biting her lip. I sighed, I guess I had said it a bit harshly. "It's not your fault, I guess. It's just that I get mad easily – it doesn't help that I'm in a bad mood. Besides, I'm not good with dealing with people. Please excuse my rudeness."
She smiled and took out something from her pocket. "Here, you deserve this!"
"No thanks, I don't need a reward-" She held my hands, silencing me. "No really! You deserve it! I'm sure you'll get another chance. Thank you for saving me!" She let go of my hands and turned, walking away.
I took a look at what she had given me; it was a red ruby-gemmed ring. "A ring? Hey wait! I can't-" I froze, realizing that the red-head was no longer there. I blinked in confusion. What the hell? Where did she go? Can anyone even vanish that fast? I glanced at the ring once more and sighed.
"Now what am I supposed to do with this ring? I'm not the kind of person that even looks at rings, much less wear them. Maybe I should throw it away? But then again, it would be a waste to do that. Maybe I could find a way to pawn it off. It might make for a good price." I shoved it into my right pocket.
I was just about to head off towards the direction of home when a hand grabbed my arm and I was thrown against a bunch of trash cans.
As I struggled to my feet a hand grabbed my neck. "What the-!"
I stared. It was a guy. Not just any guy. It was those guys from earlier that had been bothering the red-head.
"You think you can get away from me, you stupid bitch?!" He punched the left side of my face and of course, my head went flying in the other direction. Simple cause and effect, people. I spat out something to the side. Blood.
"You're going to pay for it! I'm going to teach you a lesson that you'll never forget!" Smirking, he violently ripped the side of my shirt, revealing my left breast. When I started to fight back, another guy grabbed the back of my arms to hold me still. "Very nice." Let's call him guy number 2 and the previous guy number 1, shall we?
Guy number 1's lips were now on my neck while his hands groped the side of my chest.
"Shit! He's going to rape me!" My efforts to get away renewed, but didn't seem to do anything. "Damn it, he's so strong!"
"I'm going to enjoy this!" Guy number one smirked.
"No, I can't let this happen to me!" In the midst of my wild kicking, God must have been on my side because I kicked the most important part of any guy's body. Ahem. His private parts. Opps?
"Argh!" He grabbed his balls and the last guy (remember, it was a trio) quickly bent as well, probably to check if his friend was still of the living. Taking advantage of their distraction, I used my head to hit my captor's chin. "AH!" He released me as he tumbled against the wall. I got to my feet dazedly and ran.
"Get her! Don't let her escape!" The sound of pounding feet behind him told me that they have given chase.
I ran as fast as I could. I wasn't going to let those guys catch me! I won't let them win! I glanced around wildly. I gotta hide somewhere! Just then I ran past a park and I skidded to a stop. Perfect! There were a bunch of bushes here. I dove into them. I laid there breathing hard as the guys ran past 2 seconds later. I could still hear them searching around nosily.
When I felt that it was safe I came out cautiously. There was no one. Good. I felt so tired. Noticing I was a bit, ahem, revealed; I tried my best to pull my shirt up to cover up my breast. It was then that it started raining hard.
Damn the rain…
Why did it have to rain now? I guess I'm just having the worst luck today, everything was going wrong. I lost my job for saving that girl, I almost got raped by those assholes and no it's raining. I touched my cheek tentatively. It was still sore from the punch. I'll bet its going to bruise tomorrow. There's no point in even going to the police. I didn't trust anyone anymore.
Why do I have to feel so much pain? Why me?! God… I can't take anymore! I've really had enough of this life, my life. A voice drifted through my head, "If you hate your life so much, why don't you just die?"
"Die huh?" I stopped my random wandering. I was at a bridge. "Yes… death is the only solution now. Then I don't need to feel anymore pain." Climbing up onto the railing, I only managed a moment of hesitation before stepping off. "Goodbye…"
At least the few seconds of falling were exhilarating. The last thing I remember thinking was that the impact wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. What I didn't realize was that the ruby ring was glowing.
—(Third person Point of View)—
It was a peaceful day. You know, one of those where you can sit back and relax without worrying about anything. And in this peaceful scenario was a twenty-five year old man sitting down with his five year old son, fishing. A kind of father and son get-together on the weekend.
"Ne, Otou-san?"
"Nani?"
"Why isn't there any fish coming out?"
"Don't worry, son. There will be some; you've just got to patient." The man had dark brown hair with long bangs. It was tied up into a high spiky ponytail. He also wore thick glasses and a Jounin uniform. A forehead protection signaled that he was a part of the Konoha Leaf village. This man with a criss-cross scar across the left cheek was called Umino Kamashiro.
"But we're been fishing for hours!" The son was a carbon copy of Kamashiro, minus the bangs, scar and glasses. The boy was called Umino Iruka.
"That's why you've got to be patient. If you are, you might actually catch something good Iruka. I mean, who knows – maybe we'll get lucky!"
"Mou… I wish they would just come already! I'm tired of waiting!" Iruka threw on a grumpy expression. Kamashiro snickered at his son's face.
Suddenly there was a bright flash in the clearing they were in.
"Whoa! What the!?" Kamashiro protectively pushed Iruka behind him and shielded his own eyes from the light.
"Otou-san, what's happening?" Iruka was trembling behind him.
Then there was a loud splash in the river.
"What was that?" Kamashiro lowered his hands quickly. Iruka was tugging at his shirt. "Wow, Otou-san! Looks! There's a big fish in the river!" He pointed.
"A fish?" Kamashiro glanced out. Indeed there was a body floating in the river.
"Otou-san you were right! We would get lucky today!"
Kamashiro squinted, and his eyes widened. He immediately removed his glasses and handed them to his son. Iruka took them hesitantly, "Otou-san?" Iruka almost jumped when his father dove into the water.
Swimming quickly towards the body, Kamashiro took a hold of the person's arm and began to half-carry, half-swim back towards shore. Reaching the shoreline, he quickly pulled himself out before pulling out the girl out, placing her down softly.
"Wow! It's a real mermaid! Just like the ones you told me about in your stories!" Iruka gaped.
"Don't be silly! She's human like us!"
"Oh… is she dead?" Iruka voiced sheepishly. He scratched the back of his neck.
Kamashiro glanced at the body in alarm. He hadn't even attempted to check if the girl had been all right. He touched her cheek and watched carefully. "Oh man… she's not breathing! I gotta give her CPR!" Laying the woman flat on her back, he tipped her head back. Pausing slightly, he held her nose and blew 5 breaths into her airway.
Iruka's expression immediately twisted into one of shock (Saki: You know how kids are when they think it's a kiss although it isn't).
Kamashiro placed his head on her chest to listen for a heartbeat, but there was none. He repeated the process, giving her more air before giving her chest 3 press-downs. "1, 2, 3!" he muttered. "Come on, come on!"
A few more tries later she began to cough. "Yes, she's finally responding! I thought it was too late to save her!" He leaned back and retrieved his glasses, slipping them on.
For the first time he noticed that she had long blue hair. He stood up as she sat up to hack out water. Her eyes opened and she focused on him. She blinked before squinting her eyes – probably because the sun was shining down on her. "You're… Kami-sama… Am I dead?" She fainted.
"Kami-sama?"
"Otou-san, are you Kami-sama?" Iruka asked innocently. Kamashiro jumped, he had almost forgotten about Iruka.
He patted his son's head. "Don't be silly Iruka."
"Hey, Otou-san? Why are her clothes ripped?"
Kamashiro then realized that the girl's blouse had been ripped at the top and she had a steadily-forming bruise on her cheek. When he observed closer, he also noticed the red obviously-made-by-teeth mark on her neck. "Wait! Was she attacked? Maybe she was… This is bad."
"Iruka, come on. We need to take her to the hospital." Kamashiro quickly lifted her up.
"Hai!"
—Hospital—
Kamashiro and Iruka sat in the (as always) uncomfortable chairs outside of the room the girl had been immediately brought into. What kind of bad news could they get anyway?
A few minutes later, a young woman with long blonde hair tied up in pigtails exited the room. Kamashiro stood immediately. "How is she, Tsunade-sensei?"
Tsunade brushed off a sleeve of her doctor's uniform. "She's all right. She wasn't as injured as you thought she was. But…" she paused.
"But what?"
"Kamashiro, come with me. There's something I need to tell you. Come to my office." Tsunade said briskly.
"Um, okay." Kamashiro turned and bent down on one knee. "Iruka I'll be right back, okay?" Iruka nodded timidly. Standing back up, Kamashiro nodded to the doctor and the two disappeared down the hall.
—Umino's Home—
After Kamashiro and Tsunade finished their 'talk,' Kamashiro took his son and left the hospital. They had gone to report to the Hokage about what had happened earlier and was now heading home. Kamashiro was a little shocked and shaken about what had happened but Iruka, on the other had, was ecstatic because it was all fun for him.
"Tadaima!" Iruka shouted as soon as his father slid the front door open.
"Ah! Okaeri Kamashiro, Iruka. I'm in the kitchen!" Kamashiro slid his shoes off and turned left to go into the kitchen. There, a light brown haired woman was cooking dinner.
This was his wife. Her name was Umino Rena. She was a twenty-four year old Chuunin who taught at the Ninja Academy school.
"I'm home, Rena." Kamashiro kissed his wife on the cheek before sitting down at the table. He poured himself some green tea and drank it slowly, feeling all the tension uncoiling.
"Ne, Oka-san! Guess what happened today?" Iruka tugged impatiently at Rena's dress.
"Nani?" Rena asked distractedly, stirring and frowning slightly at the pot on the stove.
"Otou-san kissed a girl while she was still asleep!" Iruka stated proudly.
Kamashiro spat the tea he had been drinking out, all over the kitchen table.
"He what?!" Rena glared at Kamashiro. A dark aura began to surround her and she advanced on Kamashiro.
Sad man shrunk back. Uh oh! Trouble was brewing.
Kamashiro began to wave his hands wildly, trying to get her to calm down. "Wait, Rena! It isn't what you think it is! I can explain-"
"Save your excuses for later, Kamashiro!" Rena cracked her knuckles.
SLAP! POW! CRASH!
"YOU! YOU'RE SLEEPING ON THE COUCH TONIGHT BUDDY! " Kamashiro was let beaten on the floor as Rena stomped up the stairs to their bedroom.
SLAM!
Iruka glanced cautiously around the chair he had hid behind. His father was lying facedown, a huge growing bump on his head. "Ow.."
"Otou-san? Are you okay?" Iruka approached and poked the bump, as if to make sure his father wasn't dead yet.
Kamashiro lifted his head and glanced at his son. Taking a deep breath, he said in a calm tone. "Iruka, do me a favor… Next time, if you want to tell your mother something about me, you need to tell me first… Or else I won't take you fishing, understand?"
Iruka leapt at his father, squishing him even further into the ground, if possible. "Noooo! Anything but that!" As you can tell, Iruka loves his fishing time. "I promise!"
"Good then! Why don't you go outside and play with your friends now, okay?"
"Hai Otou-san!" Iruka quickly left the kitchen before his father changed his mind and decided that there was going to be no more fishing.
"Man… oh great. Now Rena won't talk to me for a week. I can't believe this happened. What bad luck…" Kamashiro slowly massaged the bump on his head.
—Yumiko's POV—
When I opened my eyes, I blinked in confusion. All I could see was white.
I sat up, looking around slowly. What was this place? This wasn't heaven, was it?
To make sure, I glanced at my back to see if there were any wings. There were none. "No wings. Am I dreaming then?" I pinched my hand and jumped when I felt only sharp pain. It wasn't a dream.
This place must be a hospital. Someone must've found me and brought me here.
I touched my chest. "That means… I'm alive. I didn't die from jumping off the bridge! How can that be? I thought I was dead… don't tell me it was only a dream? Damn it… that's it! I'm out of here!" I threw the blankets off.
—Meanwhile—
Tsunade was walking down the hall as the nurse beside commented lightly. "Tsunade-sensei, what do you think happened to that girl?"
"I don't know what has happened to her, but we'll find out if she wakes up. Perhaps she might explain everything to us." Tsunade scanned the clipboard she was holding.
"I hope she does because although her injuries weren't bad, it seems serious at the same time."
"Yes, I know." Tsunade bit her lip softly. "There's something I want to ask her. I wonder where she got this from. She shouldn't have it unless she stole it." She glanced at the ring in her hand.
"Tsunade-sensei!" One of the nurses rushed around the corner, a panicked expression on her face. Tsunade was immediately alert – something had happened.
"What is it?"
"T-t-the p-patient! She's gone!"
"Nani?!" Tsunade snapped. "Which one?"
"The girl with the long blue hair! She was just admitted earlier today!"
"What?!" Tsunade immediately hurried down the hall. When they got to the room, the bed was empty. The curtains fluttered – the window had been left opened. "She got out the window!"
"Alert the Hokage and everything about the girl immediately! We need to find her quick!" Tsunade ordered one of the nurses.
"Hai!" The nurse immediately left the room.
Tsunade frowned, staring out the window. "Wherever she is, she couldn't have gotten far. She must be close by!"
—Umino's Home—
"Rena, please hear me out! Everything was just a misunderstanding! What Iruka saw was all wrong! He's just a kid who thought something was something… which it was not! Come on, open the door!" Kamashiro knocked again on the door but there was no response.
Kamashiro sighed. "It's no use. She won't listen to me. If only Iruka hadn't told her HIS version of the story! Oh well, I'll leave her alone for a bit."
Perhaps she'll calm down after a few hours.
"Konnichiwa! Anyone home? Kamashiro!" A voice called.
"Huh? I wonder who that is." Kamashiro went down the stairs to see who had decided to come so late in the evening.
"Yo, Kamashiro!" A man with blond hair tied into a ponytail greeted him.
It was Inoichi. He was still dressed in his Jounin uniform. Inoichi's blue eyes were as sharp as ever. And of course, the Konoha forehead protector was tied around his forehead.
"Inoichi-san! What are you doing here?" Kamashiro asked in surprise. Usually he would call ahead to tell him that he was coming.
"The Sandaime sent me here to deliver a message. That girl you picked up – she disappeared."
Kamashiro blinked twice. Disappeared? "She what? Where did she go? A grown girl doesn't just disappear like that!"
"I don't know, but I'm sure she's probably still around. The Hokage ordered all ninjas to search for her, but we need your insight since you've seen her features up close. It'd help a lot."
Pausing, Kamashiro nodded. He could see why the Hokage was so worried. Based on his report, there was absolutely nothing known about the girl. All they knew was that she was attacked. And maybe those attackers were a threat to the village itself. Precautions needed to be made.
"Right! I'll help too!" Kamashiro slipped his shoes on. Both of them rushed out of the house in search of the missing girl.
—Somewhere downtown—
I started my 'escape' by walking around aimlessly. The place was so unfamiliar. Where the heck was I? This didn't even remotely resemble Japan. Everything here was different. For example, since when did they have wagons instead of cars?
People are staring at me too. Way to make me feel out of place even more. It was probably the way I dressed that made them stare. I was still wearing the hospital gown. I hadn't been able to find my other clothes, and I could find other clothes to change into except for a pair of pants. And of course, I had no shoes. And damn did my feet ever hurt. Going barefoot on a dirt path is a no-no, but hey, what can I do?
Now what should I do? My stomach began to growl when I realized that I hadn't eaten anything since last night. Suddenly a delicious smell wafted by. I began to follow it. Food! I stopped when I reached a stand. Ichi-ra-ku Ra-men. Sounds yummy to me. I spotted a blond spiky haired man on a stool beside an old man… I think. He had white hair. Looked like an old man to me.
I watched as the blonde lifted a bowl and downed the soup down. "Oh man that was great! Can I have another bowl of miso pork ramen?"
"Hai, coming right up!"
"Hey, Jiraiya-sensei, I heard that you're writing a novel, right? Is that the truth?" The younger asked.
"Haha, you got that right! I'm going to be writing an interesting story! It's going to be the best novel you've ever read!" The older man laughed, giving him thumbs up. I stared at him for a few seconds. He had long white hair that was tied back into a low ponytail. And old man with long hair? Don't they usually go bald?
"That's so cool! I can't wait to read it, sensei!"
"Hai, here's your meal!" The cook placed the bowl in front of the blonde.
"Ne, Minato, shouldn't you be at the office, filing? Since you are the Yondaime."
"Don't worry! I'll do that after I finish eating. I'll get back to work in no time! Besides, even Hokages need breaks, you know." He waved a hand in Jiraiya's direction.
"Well if you say so. Don't go blaming me if you get into trouble." Jiraiya snorted.
"I won't! That's because I'm not going to GET into trouble!"
After a while I zoned out and was so busy drooling as I watched them eat. My stomach growled loudly as my palm slowly circled my lower stomach. "Damn it! Stop growling! I don't have any money!"
"You must be hungry, young lady!"
I yelped when the old man appeared in front of my face. "Ah!" I jumped backwards, surprised.
"Sensei! That wasn't nice of you to scare her!" Minato was right behind him.
"But this girl is watching you eat ramen, isn't that right cutie?" Jiraiya cupped my chin with his hand.
"Don't touch me, pervert!" I slapped his face immediately. God, I hate people touching me!
"Ow! That hurts! How dare you slap me?! You didn't have to do that, you know…" He glared at me, rubbing his cheek. He settled back onto his stool.
I glared back. "I can slap whoever I want, you pervert!"
"Oi, oi! Don't call me a pervert, you dumb girl! I'm not a pervert! I'm a perfect gentleman who treats a lady right." Jiraiya pounded his right first onto his chest proudly and something fell out from his pocket.
We all looked down at the fallen book. On the cover was a nude woman.
A vein began to twitch in my forehead. "You called yourself a gentleman?"
Jiraiya quickly picked up his book and shoved it into his pocket. "This isn't mine! A friend of mine asked me to buy him a copy! I wouldn't look at these type of books, really. I'm no pervert!" He whistled innocently.
Liar! I could tell he was lying. Definitely a pervert.
Minato slapped his own forehead. "Sensei…" He glanced at the floor, probably ashamed. "You're not fooling anyone." Jiraiya gaped at him, obviously betrayed.
"Whatever, I don't like you touching me! And if you ever get close or touch me again, you're not going to be looking at any hentai books any longer, you got that?" I fumed.
"Whoa, she's one tough girl! I like your attitude! Hey, how about being my model?" Wow, he sure recovered fast.
"I'm not interested!" I bet he was going to write something perverted. I don't trust him at all.
"Come on, you'll be famous!"
"I said, not interested!"
"Come on, it'll be fun!"
I finally grabbed his collar, fed up. "I already told you, I'm not interested. Which word don't you understand? It mean NO!" Jiraiya held up his hands, surprised. That was when my stomach decided it would like to voice its opinion again.
Minato chuckled. "You must be hungry!"
I flushed. "Shut up!" I released Jiraiya. Damn my stomach for embarrassing me.
"Let me buy you a bowl of ramen. Take it as an apology for my sensei." He offered.
I wanted to say no, but my stomach wasn't going to have that. "Okay."
"Hey, give me a miso pork ramen for this young lady here!"
"Coming right up!"
Walking up, I settled on a stool, pointed the furthest away from Jiraiya. The blond smiled at me. "By the way, I'm Namikaze Minato. This is my old sensei, Jiraiya."
"Nice to meet you, cutie!" Jiraiya winked at me. I shivered. It gave me the chills, not to mention it didn't make me feel any safer here. "Well young girl, aren't you going to tell us your name?
"Sorry, I don't give out my name to guys. I don't trust them, if you know what I mean." I gave him a pointed look. Not after what happened to me that one night.
"Nani! After we give you our names and even buy you a meal! You should at leas-mmmff!" Minato covered Jiraiya's mouth in one smooth movement, grinning sheepishly.
"We completely understand! Don't worry, we won't ask anymore. Just enjoy your lunch, all right?" He smiled hesitantly.
I took out a pair of chopsticks, settling down. I could hear the two whispering quietly. They failed, of course, because I evidently heard them.
"Minato, what are you doing? Don't you think that this girl's so rude?" Jiraiya whispered.
"It's all right, sensei. I'm sure she's afraid of us since we're strangers. We shouldn't force her if she doesn't want to."
"But I want to know her name…" Jiraiya muttered.
A few minutes later, my ramen arrived. Oh happy day! It smelt so good! As I snapped my chopsticks, I picked up a piece of pork. I popped it into my mouth. Immediately my mouth exploded into delicious pork flavor. It was then that I began to eat fast.
"Whoa, you must be really hungry!" Minato said, surprised.
I nodded without replying, slurping up a particular noodle loudly. I saw a few people glance at me as they walked by.
"That's very unladylike of you. A lady should be eating a little more quietly. Not go eating like a pig and making a mess out of a meal." Jiraiya said in a matter of fact way.
I didn't really care what he was yapping about. I was too hungry, so I ignored him.
Minato only chuckled, obviously not caring. Good, because I didn't feel like arguing with him either.
"Yondaime! There you are!"
I glanced back and saw two others come out of nowhere. Literally; out of nowhere. Appeared out of thin air. I wonder how they arrived. Fly? Weird…
"Konnichiwa, Jiraiya-sama!" They both bowed their head in respect. Damn, did I insult royalty or something? I hope not.
"Ah, Kamashiro, Inoichi! What brings you here?" Minato gave them both a bright smile.
"We are looking for a missing girl. It was the one Kamashiro found in the river this morning. We were wondering if you've seen her at all today." Inoichi explained.
"A girl?" Minato paused, and then brightened as if he had remembered. "Ah, that girl! Was it in the report I read this morning, Kamashiro?"
"Hai, that's right! It appears that she's now missing. We need to find her, under Sandaime's orders. We're not sure if she's a spy or not." Kamashiro said worriedly.
So they're looking for someone. Not my business! I continued to eat.
"That's true… that would be a problem if she turned out to be one. It would be a threat to the villagers. I'm sure none of us want that to happen."
"We'll help too if you would tell us what she looks like? Do you remember, Kamashiro?" Jiraiya asked suddenly.
"Hai! I can describe her for you. She was around 5 feet 4 inches."
Hey, that's my height too!
"She had white skin, no visible scars."
Sounds pretty.
"Oh, sounds like my type! I bet she's thin and sexy!" I glanced over to see Jiraiya practically drooling all over the counter. Disgusting.
"Sensei!"
Kamashiro coughed. "As I was saying. She had long blue hair that reached her lower back. She had violet eyes. I think she looked between the ages of 14 and 17.
Hey, I have blue hair and violet eyes. I'm 17 years old too.
It sounded as if they were talking about me, too. Ha, that would be funny if they were looking for- I choked. Hey, wait a second. That can't be right. They couldn't be talking about me right? But then again… I did escape a hospital.
"Did you say blue hair?" Jiraiya asked.
"Hai."
"Violet eyes?" Minato blinked.
"Hai, that's right. Is something wrong?"
I paled as Jiraiya and Minato glanced at each other. "Sensei, does that mean…"
"Yeah, I think so."
Please tell me they weren't thinking of me. I hope not. I'd better ask to make sure. I slowly turned around and realized both of them were looking at me.
Kamashiro gaped. "Ah, that's her!" He pointed. It's rude to point, bastard!
Oh crap! They WERE talking about me! They probably think I'm a criminal or something, escaping like that. Time to run away!
I dashed through them but Minato caught my arm, twisting it around my back. He slammed me down onto the counter.
"Ow, let me go! I'm not a criminal! I haven't done anything wrong!" I struggled wildly. Too strong. Damn.
"Ow, ow, ow!" I cried out inside.
"Calm down, no one said that you're a criminal or anything!" Liar. Mister I'm-looking-for-a-girl said I was. Minato glanced at Kamashiro. "Are you sure this is her?"
"Hai, I'm positive!"
"I see. Well it looks like it's fate, lady. Why don't you come to my office and we'll discuss this?" Minato gave the others a look.
Kamashiro and Inoichi nodded before the former took out a rope, looping it around my wrists. Then they both held my upper arms on either side of me.
"Let's go." Minato ordered. The march of death began. Or at least that's what it seemed like.
What the heck was going on? What were they going to do with me? What were we going to discuss!
And not to mention… where the heck AM I?!
TBC…
There you have it! Yumiko is in their world and she doesn't realize where she is. She will be meeting more people in the next chapter! I hope you liked it and please REVIEW!
-Saki-Kun