Scarlet Justice [Naruto AU]

[FortePlus]

In a world of child soldiers and nigh constant war, I imagine at least the ninja villages don't really care about orientations. Civillians probably worry more about their jobs or "how not to get eaten by ninja bandits"

Edit: nvm Forte explained it well.

Click to shrink...

This isn't wrong either. Zen is a civilian remember and he isn't privy to the workings of the ninja world at depth. Even if people want to kick up fuss about girls kissing girls they're not going to anything, especially if they're of a notable clan. And depending on clan status it might matter even less, like if you're miles away from the succession and such. There's also the possession of nobility status and/or being stupid rich which lets you get away with a lot by itself.

So there are plenty of progressive and liberated people around, but society at large has held onto a lot of traditional conservative values because of things like clans and clan techniques etc. I've always seen it as complex in that manner.

Platonic love is also alien to people here, since traditionally people who are close are either family or lovers.

 

[Khona Moshr]

Huh, seems the Naruto world is reversed to ours, and are more accepting of male-male relationships than female-female. Wonder why that's the case?

Click to shrink...

Well in history male-male relationships were more celebrated than female-female relationships in some of our cultures such as Rome, where being the penetrating partner male was see as desirable while almost every Roman author could not even think that a lesbian relationship was even possible.

 

[FortePlus]

"Okay, let's suppose for the sake argument that you can somehow have sex, AND not have a penis at the same time. The real question becomes why you would even want to. Am I right, fellas?" - a Roman philosopher, probably

 

[Khona Moshr]

"Okay, let's suppose for the sake argument that you can somehow have sex, AND not have a penis at the same time. The real question becomes why you would even want to. Am I right, fellas?" - a Roman philosopher, probably

Click to shrink...

that's... actually very accurate. The Romans thought a dick or something like a dick was needed for sex to feel enjoyable and only for the person penetrating.

 

[FortePlus]

that's... actually very accurate. The Romans thought a dick or something like a dick was needed for sex to feel enjoyable and only for the person penetrating.

Click to shrink...

I can feel my brain expanding. Ancient dudes were into some wild stuff man.

Also in universe you can get gay married if you want to have a non traditional marriage or find a priest somewhere that will hook you up. The problem is again societal expectations and that if certain conservative people find out they'll probably bully you, which is why Zen mentioned older ladies who live with each other but in public are "really good friends" wink nudge. There's unsavory stuff going on in the background that won't get a large amount of air play - for example, I mentioned kunoichi classes at the academy and how they drilled in contingencies for date rape. So if it seems like I'm not digging into this sort of content too deeply, it's all still there, just not taking over the story focus. And I like answering these questions too.

 

[FortePlus]

Scarlet Justice - ep. 21
"Return"
---

The delay and general expenditure of energies calls for another stop in the desert. There's shade to hide behind, but no oasis this time unfortunately. Some digging and the use of Water Release allows me to create a shallow pool to wash off in, which is good enough for what I need. It's cold and reminds me of the first time I took a shower in the apartment.

The water is tinted red as I wash.

So this is it, then. Everything solidifying for me at once. I'm a natural born killer. Someone who enjoys spilling blood and ripping through bodies. I enjoy the heat of battle, and the pain and suffering of my enemies.

And killing is still...something I do. Rather than something I am. A function that I am skilled at, rather than the core of my being. No, that's something else more complex that I will discover soon. From there, I will continue to grow. I still worry about my body and want to get back home so I can properly drink my fortified milk, like all healthy and growing girls should.

But then...well, I can't lie to myself. I'm looking forward to the next battle, whenever it might be. Craving the opportunity for more carnage. With a sigh, I take my bloodied clothing and start to lightly wash it. Luna will have to take care of the rest, but I don't like giving her more work than necessary.

I return to camp proper and Kurenai informs me that she's done more investigation. First, the wave of bandits we saw was the only wave and there will be no reinforcements coming. But that only makes sense, forty fighters should be enough to overwhelm most security forces. The second was there were indeed forty bandits present, as I confirmed with my technique.

I killed exactly thirty nine of them.

She doesn't know whether to be impressed or horrified. Hinata for her part doesn't dwell on the details, and Shino is clearly envious of my performance but tries to hide it as he goes about his business. Strange boy. I gather an offering for the two children that I scared a few hours before, slicing apples apart and making sure there are no seeds present.

"I'm sorry for scaring you earlier. I wasn't exactly myself."

They accept my apology and enjoy the apple slices, allowing me to stroke their heads and rub gently behind their ears.

"Thank you. You've done well today, so be proud of yourselves. You were very brave."

Dinner is quick tonight, cooked mainly from cans. We all take our time relaxing as night begins to fall. Kurenai is reading and Shino is again observing the local insects. Zen and Airi are checking the cargo together and discussing security measures for home. Toki snores away in his sleeping bag, which is a mercy in itself after what he's caused. Hinata sits on the ground, hugging her knees. She seems to be in thought.

There are things I want to talk about, but for now...I think I will leave her alone. She needs her space too. There's another important person I need to talk to first. "Kurenai. I'm heading out for a bit...I need some space to think about things."

"Alright. Area should be clear and we're looking out. Don't wander too far, though."

"I won't. See you in a bit."

I walk out into the desert until I feel like I'm a good enough distance away, standing in the shadow of a sand dune. The dusk light makes the desert look beautiful.

"I managed to do it," I say into the air.

"I see. Well done, my love."

I turn to see Midori, lying on her side in the sand and waving a fan near her face. She wears a red yukata today, paired with black tights and sandals. As always, a hazard to men and women alike.

"Thank you," I say to her. "It will take some time to fully realize, but...there's a light in her eyes now that wasn't there before. It makes me feel very warm, and very happy."

"Lili, I want you to know how proud I am of you. At your age, and with everything that you've gone through so far...to do all of that for someone else is truly amazing. You're growing up splendidly, more than I could have hoped."

"Midori-nee...aside from that, there's...something else."

"I can guess what it is," she says. "It's 'that' side, isn't it?"

"Yes." I pause a moment, gathering myself. "It's not right to enjoy killing...is it?" I ask. There is an answer already within myself, but I want to see exactly how it might match up with everything else.

Midori is silent for a while before shrugging, waving cool air over her face with her fan. "Who's to say, really? I wouldn't count on the judgements of humans. You must have thought the same."

"I did."

"Well, I'm the same as you. Every so often, I feel like playing with my food before devouring it."

"So..."

"Yes. I think taking lives in battle is a sublime experience. Does that make you ashamed?"

"Of course not. I wouldn't think something like that. It's just...there's a bit of conflict, with this world at least."

"Mm-hm. I can understand, barely. Part of the reason I chose you is because you have a predator's instinct. Human beings are animals too, even if they think otherwise due to walking on two legs and eating with forks and spoons." She turns up her nose dismissively. "Amusing, that. Declaring themselves to be the peak of civilization."

"What would be the next step?" I ask.

"Accepting this new part of you, of course. Accept that you enjoy the feeling of killing, and the feel of blood on your skin. And then, you will not be consumed by it. The more you hold it in and force it back, the more your mind corrodes as a result. Balance yourself in all things, especially this."

"I see." It's that simple? Well...actually, I do remember the feeling during the last battle. Letting the murderous impulse flow through me was easier than trying to push it behind a wall. And as a result, I could control my every movement. I could see the endpoint, and understand what it was I wanted.

"And of course...there's a way to make proper use of that bloodlusted state. A bit of an advanced technique, but I'll teach you later on. Alright?"

"Thank you."

She smiles at me. "Any time, my love. Do not worry...I will accept every part of you, no matter what the world might think. And I know that Hinata will too, now that you've forged such a wonderful bond."

My worries about this are melting away to nothing. Midori is right, as she always is...this problem isn't one any longer, now that I understand what it is I'm looking at. Feeding that side of me properly when conditions are met is the key. And with this sort of control, I can negotiate as needed. My thoughts and feelings remain intact while in that state...no corruption to worry about. But I am very, very interested in seeing what more I can gain while satisfying my urges...

"You're not dwelling on that anymore, at least. Good. Is there anything else, Lili?"

"Nothing right now. When you see Luna again...please tell her about the recent incident. We can talk more once I get home, and she's fully processed it."

"I'll tell her. Make sure that you complete the rest of your mission safely, yes?" She rises to her feet and beckons me closer. I follow her command and she pulls me into one of her beautiful and warm hugs, stroking my hair gently as I close my eyes. "Lili...remember that I love you. I always will."

"I love you too."

I feel her warmth disappear, and as I open my eyes I am alone again in the desert. I let out a breath, feeling much better than before. The walk back is short, and I arrive at camp to see everyone getting ready for bed.

"Smoking is bad," I say to Toki. He shrugs and tosses his cigarette away, holding his hands up.

"Right, sure. Just don't cut me open and eat my liver, psycho. I'll behave."

There's no point in even bullying this trash. I let the comment slide away. "Surely. Thank you for your cooperation," I say tonelessly. I pass by him and find Hinata, who is preparing her sleeping bag.

"Spare a moment?" I ask.

"Take as many as you need," she replies, turning to give me a smile. "Kurenai-sensei wouldn't let me make up for all the time I missed on watch..."

"There's no need to split things like that, and none of us minded it. You weren't well, so...don't worry about it. Really."

"I'll try, but you know how I am...um, did you want to talk about anything in particular, Lili?" she says as she finishes with her sleeping bag.

"Nothing. I just...wanted to see you. A lot has happened in a short time, and you've grown beautifully. So I think it only makes sense."

"I see. I think...I have changed, a whole lot in these hours. And I won't be done changing for a while. It...feels good."

I nod. "I'm glad you're okay, Hina. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to do anything but watch...and, well..."

She opens her mouth to speak but then pauses, blushing. I...didn't say anything lewd this time, did I?

"Lili...say that again, please."

I blink. "Again? That I was worried about you?"

"'I'm glad you're okay'...and you called me..."

"I said that I was glad you were okay and...oh." I feel myself blushing too, now. "I-I'm sorry. I just shortened your name all of a sudden. I sometimes think like that, and...yeah."

"It's alright. Can...you say it again?"

"I can, Hina." Wow. It...feels so natural now.

"I...I've never been close to anyone like this before, s-so...this is an experience I've never had. People who are close to each other will shorten each others' names, I remember. And it's short and cute, like your name is, Lili." She giggles softly. "Even the same amount of letters..."

"Yeah."

"Um...can you...call me that from now on? I mean...as often as you can..." She presses her fingers together nervously. "I'd...r-really like it if you did, Lili."

I nod. "Of course I can. Anything you like, Hina."

She smiles and hugs me tightly. I hug her back in just the same way, and we stand together silently, absorbing each other's warmth. I feel such happiness just being here with her, sharing little things like this and not letting anything or anyone bother us. It's the same feeling I get with Midori...and this must be the joy that she feels every moment that she spends with me. It's amazing.

Hina pats me on the shoulders. "I have first watch tonight. You should rest, Lili. You've done a lifetime's worth of work in one afternoon..."

"I will. Thank you."

"Good night, Lili."

"Good night, Hina."

She pecks me on the cheek and runs off to her post. I head to my own area, arrange it, and then settle into my bag and close my eyes. Tonight will be the most peaceful in a while, at least for a few hours. I think I have second last watch...more than good enough.

"..."

The more I think about it, the better it feels.

Hinata...my Hina...my precious sister.

---

We are finally, truly in the last stretch now. Our journey has us nearing the shinobi village of Wind Country, the Hidden Sand Village. Compared to the Leaf's welcoming open gates, we have to pass through a tall, narrow corridor guarded on all sides by shinobi. Today, we will not be entering ourselves, instead handing off our clients safely before making our return.

It has been an indescribable journey.

My first mission, soon to be completed...

We stop, and Zen checks in with the guards. We identify ourselves as Leaf shinobi, and Kurenai reports the incident with the bandits.

"I see," the Sand shinobi says with a nod. "Any documentation?"

"Here," Kurenai says as she hands him a scroll.

"Thank you. We'll send a team to investigate, and to collect the bodies that are still there. And you said that you had the lone survivor here, correct?"

"Yes." Shino brings the bandit over, who has been fed and taken care of over the last day or two. Shinobi inspect the wagon and horses, and check over Zen, Airi, and Toki. They're given the all clear. Our work is finally done.

"This is where we part ways, then. We'll send a bird to your village with details once we've unloaded and put our feet up for a bit," Zen says. "It's been great working with you. Hell of a job, really."

"I feel the same, it's been a pleasure. Thank you for trusting us," Kurenai says. She and Zen shake hands. "Good luck with your business."

"Yeah, same to you. I was a bit worried at first, but you've got a good group of kids." He nods towards me, and I nod back with understanding. "We'll be making use of the Leaf again in the future, for sure."

"Thank you very much for your service," Airi says in her quiet manner. She bows and our group bows in return. "You have...a long journey head of you. Please be safe...and take this, as a small token of appreciation."

She hands me a basket, and I can already smell delicious baked goods inside.

"Thank you, Airi. Please take care."

"I will...thank you."

We all give our clients one last wave before leaving, with Kurenai leading us back across the desert.

The mission is officially a success.

---

Unbound by civilians, we speed across the land and back towards the Leaf, enjoying Airi's lovely treats along the way. It takes us two and a half days to get back to our home, the Hidden Leaf. Hinata's wound heals, we force our sensei to take some extra time to sleep instead of worrying, and there's a stop at a point of interest for Shino's sake.

That familiar entrance with gates reaching into the sky...at long last.

"We'll have to report in to complete our mission for real," Kurenai explains. "But you all did a good job, and I'm proud of you. Aside from those bandits, it wasn't too out of the ordinary for a C-Rank. But...well, it helped that we had a serial killer on our side," she says with a wry smile.

"That's kind of harsh," I say with a pout.

"I mean, it really seems like it. You even did the creepy smile again."

"Hm." I slowly shrug. "Well, expect to see more of it in the future."

She sighs. "I guess. Better that than you being a pervert..."

"Oh, no need to worry. I can do both," I point out.

"...you really are awful, you know that?"

"I don't mind...this new side of Lili," Hina says. "As long as we're together. And...and next time, I'll be stronger for everyone's sake. I didn't do well, and I'm sorry for that," she says, bowing apologetically as we walk.

"Rest and nutrition are key," Shino says. "As long as you have that, you'll be able to perform well on any mission. You have the ability to be great, Hinata."

"Shino...thank you."

"And I'll take my own advice on that end...because I have yet to show off my true power, too."

"Oh. You're still upset that I killed all of those bandits myself, then," I say.

Shino pushes up his glasses. "I didn't say anything like that."

"You don't need to," Kurenai says with a sigh. "It's obvious, you know. Let's head to the mission desk so we can finally wind down. You kids need to decompress, and I definitely want a drink or two..."

I take a glance at the road behind us briefly, and notice that there's another team coming in. Interesting that another group has come in at this time...hm. I flick my tongue at the air and note the scents. Some trashy women's perfume, and...noodles.

Oh. I know these people.

"So they were on a mission too," I mumble. A bit of curiosity comes on, and I stop walking. Everyone else follows suit, and looks back along the main road as well.

"Yo, Lili!"

Naruto calls to me as he comes into view. I acknowledge him with a wave, and slowly the rest of his team comes in behind him.

"Hoi, Kakashi. You look a bit worn out. Was that C-Rank too much for you?" Kurenai asks.

"Well..." The man with silver hair and his headband tilted over his left eye...Kakashi Hatake. He's known for his legendary skill, and I've heard of his brutal team qualifying methods. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura...this seemingly incompatible team is actually his first group of genin. All of the others were failed and sent back to the Academy, or transferred to another instructor.

I wonder briefly at what could have been. Perhaps instead of Sakura, I would be standing between Naruto and Sasuke. But that might be a nightmare too much for any instructor to live with. Sakura seems elated to be within five feet of Sasuke...which means she hasn't changed a bit since graduation. It's pitiful.

"We...had to punch above our weight a bit this time. I'll tell you about it later after I've given my report." Kakashi says to Kurenai. He rubs the side of his head a bit. "Escorting the old man wasn't as simple as it was supposed to be."

"I see..."

"I know we're not supposed to talk too much about certain exploits," I say to Naruto, "but I'm quite curious about how things went. I'll treat you to ramen later, and you can tell me about it."

"Eh? Really?"

"Yes. Meet me at Ichiraku when you're done with everything."

He nods and gives me a thumb up. "Gotcha!"

"That's really nice of you, Lilith."

"..." I shift one eye to the side and look at Sakura. "Yes. I'm sure you would think so."

"I've actually gained a bit of admiration for Naruto after this mission...he was pretty cool in a few places, you know."

"Hm." For once, her words are sincere. But she's still obviously pining after Sasuke. I make a point of not looking in his direction. No need to ruin the rest of my day. "Kurenai-sensei, shall we leave?"

"Yeah, we might as well. I'll see you later, Kakashi."

"Take care. Oh, right...Lilith, isn't it? If you've got some time later this week, we should have a talk," Kakashi says to me. "It's nothing that serious, so I'm not making it mandatory."

"I'll keep it in mind, Kakashi-sensei."

"Good!" I can tell it's a genuine smile beneath the mask he wears. "Take care."

"Thank you." I give him a polite bow before following Kurenai and the others.

 

[FortePlus]

Scarlet Justice - ep. 22
"Interval"
---

We reach the assignment desk again. Debriefing is simple, taken care of by Kurenai. She makes mention of the bandit problem, and our performances during the encounter.

"Fuukudou Heavy," the Hokage says. He puffs on his pipe in thought. "They've been causing trouble for a while now. The Sand has been given notice already about them, so they'll send a scroll with information our way soon for investigation purposes. And I'll have someone in administration make mention of this to JPC..." He looks to me. "Ah, yes. Lili...we should meet later this week in my office. Whenever you have time, just let one of the secretaries know once you come in."

"Understood, Lord Hokage." Another higher-up looking to talk to me. I wonder what's happening all of a sudden...recent news couldn't have spread this quickly, so perhaps it's going back to my Academy days?

"There was also a bird with a message for you all, sent by the gentleman who made the mission request. He sends his thanks, and has increased the mission pay for your hard work. Aside from positive general comments...he's also invited you four to a wedding in a year's time."

"Wedding?" Kurenai asks. "Well, that's interesting. Guess he was ready to settle down from the start. Have to wonder who he's marrying..."

"His long time assistant...a woman by the name of Airi."

I had a feeling, but wasn't entirely sure...no wonder she was so comfortable around him. "Hm. So that Airi was a fox after all," I say.

"I didn't think that she and Zen would ever marry," Shino mumbles. Well, paying attention to bugs and not being able to read the mood would make this a shock to him.

"They make a cute pair," Hina chimes in. Of course, she would notice. "Will...we be going?"

"If we're in good health, we won't miss it. Ah, if that's okay, Lord Hokage," Kurenai says.

He chuckles at that. "I'll put it on reserve for you. A D-Rank mission, once the details arrive. Fair?"

"Fair," we all respond in unison. A wedding sounds beautiful. I can't wait.

We complete our debriefing, collect our payment through small scrolls, and are dismissed. Kurenai slips away to a bar as mentioned before, and Shino heads towards home. Hina gives me a warm hug before meeting up with the Hyuuga that's posted outside of the building. They travel back to the compound together.

"..." I think about it for a moment before leaving. She should be strong enough to withstand further abuse, now that I've helped her. Soon enough, she will break her chains completely. I know it to be true.

I head home and shower before getting into something casual. A blue sundress and some slippers will do. I make sure my clothing is put into the wash basket, and clean my armband properly by hand. Once it's dry, I put it back on my upper right arm, and strap a small weapon holster to my leg. It holds my money and the knife that Midori gave me, just in case.

"Miss Lilith! You're home!"

"Luna." I head to the front door as she closes it. She spots me and runs over, hugging me tightly.

"Oh, Miss Lilith. I'm so glad to see you again. You're safe. Lady Midoriko told me that you met in the desert."

"Luna...she must have told you, and I..."

She places a finger on my lips. "I know. She told me everything. What I worry about is...you two getting a little too into your hobby, enough so that I might have to scold you. Perhaps I can keep a spray bottle on hand for naughty snake girls. But...let me put your mind at ease. There's nothing that could make me think less of you. Not even this." She lifts her finger and smiles at me.

"Luna...you're really trying to settle it, just like that."

"You shouldn't have expected anything else. You are my everything, Miss Lilith. No matter what you might be, or become, I will be by your side. I will love you always. And I don't expect anything else but for you to grow into a magnificent warrior. My heart is cleared of any fear. And I have no hesitation within me. I will serve you until my very last breath, because that is what I want. I promise...and nothing you say or do can change that."

"Even if I..."

"Even down a path stained with blood...even down one that leads into an all-consuming darkness. I will follow you, Miss Lilith."

"I don't deserve you, Luna." I really don't. Nobody does. Someone so devoted has to be a treasure from heaven itself. I truly am spoiled, beyond compare. The way her eyes sparkle when she looks at me...it's too much. She's so beautiful, and so beautiful to me in so many ways.

"But you have me forever. Now, I'll take care of your things...please enjoy your time out, Miss Lilith. You more than deserve it."

"Thank you, Luna. I'll return to you soon."

She nods. "Of course. Until then, my mistress."

I hug her once more before leaving, feeling an extra bounce in my step. Without a second thought, she accepted me as well...all of me. I must be blessed to have these people in my life, who can watch me transform to a monster and back again, and love me to my core at the end of it all.

Ichiraku Ramen comes into view quickly. Naruto is waiting outside, his jacket open and headband in his hands. He looks at it for a moment with a solemn expression on his face, then ties it around his head again.

"Naruto," I say to him as I approach.

"Lili...oh, you look pretty nice. I should've dressed up, huh?"

"No, don't worry. You're fine as you are...I just wanted to wear something light for the rest of the day." He nods and I note that he's blushing again, much like the last time at the Academy. I really should let him down easily, if he's thinking along those lines...

"Well, let's get something to eat. I can-"

"No, it's my treat," I interrupt. "I insist."

"A-alright. You got it."

"Good." We enter the stall and take seats next to each other.

"Hey, Naruto. And Lilith, wasn't it?"

"Yes, but Lili is fine," I say to Teuchi. "I promised I would be back."

"Haha, you did! Glad to have you again!"

"Thank you. I'll have whatever Naruto orders, since it's my treat tonight. I think you'll be doing a lot of cooking."

"Just the way I like it," he says with a smile.

"Ah...my pardon, but do you have any milk?" I ask.

"Milk? I think so. Ayame, get some milk for Lili here," Teuchi calls to the back.

"Alright, coming up!"

Naruto orders the pork ramen and goes through the expected amount of bowls before slowing down some. I enjoy my own bowls at a somewhat slower pace. Ayame gets me the cool bottle of milk that I desired.

"Kakashi said you were punching above your weight," I say to Naruto. He slurps up his noodles and nods.

"Yeah. It was some drunk old man who wanted us to take him to Wave Country. Guarding him from goons and the like."

Drunk old man...so that was what the trash who mocked me earlier was there for.

"Turns out," Naruto says as he wipes his mouth, "he was too damn poor to afford the proper mission fee. B-Rank would have cost too much for him, so he lied about it being a simple escort. Apparently it should have been listed as B, or even A-Rank. Luckily we had Kakashi-sensei to figure things out, but we ran into even more trouble after we took out the first set of assassins...that old man, Tazuna, was the architect for a huge bridge that was supposed to connect Wave Country to the mainland and junk. And then..."

Naruto tells me a wild, if not very detailed story about the rest of the mission. There was the appearance of Zabuza Momochi, a former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. His apprentice, a boy named Haku who from what I can understand, possessed the rare bloodline limit of Ice Release. Kakashi was forced to use his secret weapon and claim to fame, the Sharingan, multiple times. It took a toll on him, which explained his exhausted look from a few hours earlier.

After some dramatics including a false death - Haku seemed to also be a skilled hunter shinobi, which explains that phenomenon - and a makeshift training session while Kakashi recovered from overuse of the Sharingan, everything comes to a head with a final battle on the bridge itself. Naruto and Sasuke fight Haku, and are beaten up badly. Sasuke has definitively awakened his Sharingan by now, having activated them once more in the midst of battle. Naruto recalls himself losing control and drawing on 'something' deep inside of him, which he doesn't fully understand. I can only guess it was the strength of the Nine-Tails...which means that whatever seal is holding it in place has weakened. I have to wonder how much Kakashi knows about that.

"Haku...died protecting Zabuza from Kakashi-sensei." Yes, that's right. Those two were fighting somewhere else, piecing everything together from the scattered retelling. "And Zabuza...even though he kept calling Haku a tool, he...he cried for that guy in the end. And then he killed that sleazy Gato, and a bunch of those other thugs before he couldn't do anymore. But...he got to be by Haku's side in the end. Like he wanted."

"..."

"Hey, Lili...I know this will sound weird, but..."

"But what?" I ask.

He smiles a melancholy smile. "I...liked those guys."

I think on that a moment, reflecting on my own experience. "That's not too weird. Even if they were shinobi, and your enemies...they were also human beings. No matter how much we try to kill our emotions, we can never succeed. We are people. We're all...just a different type of animal, really," I say, thinking about Midori's commentary.

"Ah...that's kinda deep..."

I shrug. "Maybe." A few moments pass by in silence as we continue eating.

"It was...a pretty rough experience to have," Naruto says after a while. "But I'm really glad I had it. It just makes my resolve a lot stronger, you know? I want to change the shinobi world one day. Don't know how I'm gonna do it, but I will. And maybe...maybe people like Zabuza and Haku don't have to be bad guys anymore. They can find their place with the rest of us."

"Is that what you want?" I ask.

"Yeah. A better world for everyone." He rubs his nose once. It's a noble goal. Very like him, I suppose...dreaming big and thinking of something beyond what we have now. I can understand that sort of thing, in my own way.

He finishes another bowl and I slide one of mine over that has only just started cooling. With a grateful nod, he goes to work on it a bit before stopping. "Oh, right! What about your mission?" he asks me.

"Nothing too bad. We just escorted a wagon across the desert."

I tell him about the few things that happened, most of them being episodes between Zen and Toki, dealing with the antics of the latter.

"Hehe! Sounds like a good time! Well, aside from the bandits...but you kicked all their asses, yeah?" he asks me.

"I..." I pause a moment. "I killed them all, save for one."

"H-holy crap..." He gulps. "You really are a super elite shinobi, then...no wonder Iruka-sensei talked about you like that."

"Yes...it's something like that. I'm a natural born killer." I turn my head and look into Naruto's eyes. "What do you think, Naruto...of me?" I ask quietly.

"..." He takes a moment before coughing, and blushing once more as he stares back at me. "You...you still look beautiful and all...I-I mean...uh, I mean you're not any different! I don't feel like you're bad or evil or anything..."

I give him a smile. "I'm glad you think that of me. But...you must understand by now, yes? I'm not into boys at all."

"Oh...yeah. But, well...um..."

"Well...?"

"You're...I mean, that doesn't change what I said, I think...you know?" he says as he rubs the back of his head.

"Hm. I suppose...that makes sense. Admiring beauty doesn't have to be a strictly romantic thing, after all." I close my eyes. "Even if I did want you...even if I could have you, it wouldn't be right. Somewhere out there, perhaps...right beneath your nose...someone is waiting for you, Naruto."

"Ah...yeah. That might be it."

"In the meantime...well, I don't mean to tease," I say to him. "But you can dream of me all you like."

His face turns bright red, and he goes straight back to eating to distract himself.

"Eh?" Teuchi has a confused look on his face. "I guess I put too much spice in the pork ramen that time, that's not like me...Naruto's really burning up over there..."

I feel a warmth spreading through me.

He looked into my eyes and saw beauty, like he had a thousand times before. My heart is touched by that sort of kindness...something I didn't think would happen the first day we spoke to each other. A pure child who tries to see the good in everyone, even me. Even as I present myself to the world as a girl with ice in her veins, he still reaches out to warm me up in every spare moment. It's...very sweet.

"You really are remarkable, Naruto," I say to him.

"Y-yeah? You think so?"

"I believe it," I say with sincerity. As I smile at him, he sheepishly smiles back.

"Thanks..."

We go back to eating, side by side.

"...wait. Not into...guys?"

"...?" Did he not...?

His eyes widen and he stares at me, mouth flapping open and shut. "What...what the?! You're a...you're a...you like kissing girls, Lili?!"

"..." A remarkable child, indeed. Teuchi simply laughs and cooks more noodles for us as Ayame giggles in the background.

I don't think there's enough time left in the day to explain things to this boy...

 

[LENDAR-NOT]

I think I missed where she mentions she's not into guys

 

[FortePlus]

I think I missed where she mentions she's not into guys

Click to shrink...

The first explicit mention is in Chapter 7, "Kissing Sunflowers". When Hinata asks Lili if she's thinking of a guy she likes.

Before that it's moderately implied.

Unless you meant within the chapter, which has been helpfully quoted below me by now.

 

[Deveritas]

I think I missed where she mentions she's not into guys

Click to shrink...

I give him a smile. "I'm glad you think that of me. But...you must understand by now, yes? I'm not into boys at all."

Click to shrink...

It's a pretty delayed reaction!

e: ^ That too

 

[Khona Moshr]

after a while. "But I'm really glad I had it. It just makes my resolve a lot stronger, you know? I want to change the shinobi world one day. Don't know how I'm gonna do it, but I will. And maybe...maybe people like Zabuza and Haku don't have to be bad guys anymore. They can find their place with the rest of us."

"Is that what you want?" I ask.

"Yeah. A better world for everyone." He rubs his nose once. It's a noble goal. Very like him, I suppose...dreaming big and thinking of something beyond what we have now. I can understand that sort of thing, in my own way.

Click to shrink...

I feel a warmth spreading through me.

He looked into my eyes and saw beauty, like he had a thousand times before. My heart is touched by that sort of kindness...something I didn't think would happen the first day we spoke to each other. A pure child who tries to see the good in everyone, even me. Even as I present myself to the world as a girl with ice in her veins, he still reaches out to warm me up in every spare moment. It's...very sweet.

"You really are remarkable, Naruto," I say to him.

Click to shrink...

Well we have the counter to Lili's edge and what may be her mortality chain since Naruto is far better equipped and more likely to try to stop Lili from going to far than Hinata

It's a pretty delayed reaction!

e: ^ That too

Click to shrink...

Well Naruto is a loveable idiot so he needs time to process that he lost the love race before he even started.

Thankfully Naruto is someone that's very pure and kind sononce he understands what being gay is his response will probably be to support Lili and anyone else he knows that is gay.

 

[FortePlus]

Scarlet Justice - ep. 23
"Another Road"
---

The week starts to move by quickly. We rest a day, work lightly the next, then hit the ground running with a few D-Rank missions. They're nothing of note compared to our journey in the desert, and are completed quickly with the power of teamwork. The villagers reward us with treats, and the village itself pays us in cash, as expected compensation for our time.

I end up taking some more time out with Naruto to explain my sexuality, or what it is so far. He did have an idea of how it worked before, and I clarified some other things. While he's disappointed that he can't properly court me, he's very understanding. I tell him that it's a tricky subject to talk about in public.

"So...people don't like it?" he asks, confused.

"There are enough people that won't say anything out loud, but will silently disapprove. It's...it's the same as when the Nine-Tails was kept a secret from you," I explain, hoping to relate it to him easily.

"Oh! So some people know about it, and they'll hate you a lot, and then the others that don't really know but see something is wrong will shun that person too, right?"

"Yes. Much like that. Shinobi have some minor advantages in that we're more accepting of different lifestyles in our work. But others...it's very difficult sometimes. Not everyone is accepted."

"Hmm...that's a bummer. Alright, I'll remember to keep it quiet until you say something, or it's someone I super trust."

"Thank you."

He seems to get it. I think more gentle education will help, but this already makes me pleased.

Today I'm dealing with an unruly child. It's that cat again, the one belonging to the daimyo's wife. Her name is Tora and we as a group have become very familiar with her...to the point where I know it's quite cruel to send her back to that rotund witch, Madam Shijimi.

"Oi. Get better at hiding if you don't want to go back."

She whines and I sigh, stroking her head to calm her down. We sit in a tree as we always do, with her in my lap for a few hours while the others occupy themselves with more esoteric pursuits. All of us are aware that I can find her within a few minutes, so we use this as an opportunity to slack off while on 'company time'.

Eventually, we need to return and complete the mission. I think about my upcoming errands with Kakashi and the Hokage...clearly, one is more important than the other, but I should have time for both. To that end, I will make the appropriate preparations. I really am curious as to what they both want with me.

Tora seems less distressed today as the portly madam squeezes her. It must be thanks to my earlier kindness. Hm. Perhaps if I offer her respite periodically, then maybe...

---

Luna will be out painting today. It's a lovely day for such excursions. I dress in my usual outfit, deciding to get the least important business out of the way first - today is a free day, thankfully. I find my way to the Jounin Commander's office, and see that Kakashi is there as promised. He's reading from an orange book, and I can make out the title.

'Icha-Icha Paradise'.

So he's a lecher too, then.

"Oh, you're here." He closes his book a moment and tucks it under his arm. "Alright. We can head to the usual training field to have our chat. What do you usually go by, in terms of address?"

"Lili is fine," I say.

"Lili it is, then. Kakashi is fine for me. It's good to be familiar with comrades, after all."

Treating me like an equal already? How bold. "I see."

"Shall we go?"

I nod and follow him across town towards Team Seven's training area. There's a stream nearby, and directly ahead of us are three wooden logs standing upright. Some distance in front of them is a monument. A memorial stone, with many names already printed on it, and room for more. I imagine Kakashi chose this place as a reminder, for his students and for himself. Training Ground Three, then...

"Well, here we are."

"Yes. What was it you wanted to talk to me about, Kakashi?" I ask.

"Well," he says as he resumes his reading, "there are a few things. The most important reason I've called for you will be last. There's something you should know about Naruto. He's mentioned your name a few times, and I understand that he has an affection for you that he has yet to understand the true meaning of."

"..." I suppose that much is true. Sharp, for a man so focused on his pornography, at least.

"He also trusts you implicitly. So I figure you should know 'that' about him. He's the Fourth's legacy...the container for the Nine-Tails."

"A jinchuuriki. Yes, I know," I say casually. "He told me himself. And I accepted him in that moment."

"Ah. That saves a lot of time, then."

"His healing factor and strong stamina stood out, so I knew he had some mysterious power inside of him. And then showing off the Shadow Clone to me, a jutsu that's listed as forbidden because of the chakra costs involved. Using it so freely means he has an incredible amount of energy to burn, especially for a child whose chakra control is...well, we can call it inadequate for such a feat normally."

"I see. The Third Hokage forbade anyone from speaking about the fact that he was a host...his intent was to honour the last wishes of the Fourth, and have Naruto seen as a hero for taking on that sort of burden. But with all of the destruction that occurred, the young people and adults who were or would become parents focused their hate and anguish onto him. This filtered down to the children of this generation, who bullied and hated him without understanding why," Kakashi says. "Sasuke and Sakura don't know, but...they look down on him for other reasons, it seems."

"Hm."

"I wanted to reveal that secret to you, so that I could gauge your personality. You seem distant from everyone, but you have a good heart and care for your comrades. Well, when you're up to it anyways. Hinata Hyuuga looks a lot different from her Academy days, and I know it's because of the time she spent with you. With all that said...I would like you to help keep Naruto grounded, since he has so much love, and more importantly respect for you. Sasuke and Sakura don't backbite you within earshot, from what I understand."

"Is that so..." He really doesn't need to defend me to that degree, but...well, I did note that he was a pure child, so that's his way. It's always nice to hear.

"Even if you can't return his feelings..."

"I never intended to break his heart," I tell Kakashi. "I've already let him down gently, though I know he still dreams of me a little. And you should know that I'm into girls regardless."

"Did you explain that to him?" he asks.

"I did. He has a decent grasp on the subject, at least."

"Ah. Well, that helps a bit...he's chasing Sakura, as you know, and Sakura of course is taking the opportunity to get close to Sasuke. Sasuke is in turn obsessed with only two things: gaining more power, and crushing you."

"Hmph."

"Yes, his ego still hasn't bounced back from that time. I'm sorry to push this onto you, but I'll have to use you as a measuring stick for those boys, Lili."

I sigh. "It's fine. I understand, Kakashi."

"Alright, thanks. If it ever becomes a problem, don't hesitate to tell me."

I think for a moment. "So you want to use me as an anchor for Naruto, and as motivation for him as well as Sasuke. What about Sakura, then?"

He sighs. "There's nothing you or I can really do about that, I'm afraid. She probably resents you a bit for your earlier performances, but it's up to her what kind of shinobi she eventually becomes. Although...if you feel like applying a bit of pressure on her as well, it could help."

"I'll give it some thought," I say. Only some, though. The brat really isn't worth my time.

"Good. And now...the real reason I called for you, as I mentioned earlier."

He closes his book and looks at me directly for the first time. "Kurenai mentioned it the other day...your prowess for battle. Even if they were of inferior skill, you killed enemies at an unheard of rate, and without a scratch to show for it. As a Leaf shinobi, you're already an elite...this is why I felt that we could talk as equals, despite our ages and ranks. My talks with Iruka prior to our meeting also confirmed this. We're a lot alike in more ways than one, you know. Both of us are able to use Water and Lightning natures for our ninjutsu, as one example."

"The Sharingan puts a large gap between us," I point out. "Not to mention your archive of combat experience."

"Well, that only makes sense. I've been fighting for about as long as you've been alive, Lili. Those were compliments, after all."

"I suppose."

He chuckles. "You're an interesting girl. Nothing like Sakura at all. I suppose I can get down to it for you, since you have a grasp of your ability. Here."

Kakashi makes a few handseals, and I can see lightning chakra gathering around his right hand. It sparks upwards and makes a sound like a flock of chirping birds.

"This...is my original technique. It's not the same as the advanced version I used against Zabuza, but it's more than enough for genin. It's called Chidori."

"Chidori," I repeat as I stare at the technique. It's certainly flashy.

"Yeah. This is meant to be used as a high speed assassination jutsu. With one thrust, you can pierce through just about any target you choose. On its own, however...it's an incomplete technique." He taps his headband. "This gifted Sharingan is the key."

I frown. "So...why not teach it to Sasuke? His bloodline is more suited for it than me...even if I have the speed as you said, that might leave me open to other hazards as a result," I say to him.

But it seems he was waiting for that answer, happy as he looks. "Good! You've identified the main problem with the jutsu immediately. Much faster than I did, anyways. Saying that...there are other things you might be able to do with this technique if you think it through. The sky just might be the limit, as far as you're concerned."

"Perhaps. But I assume you have something else."

"Yes. An alternative to that sort of technique."

"What is it?" I ask, intrigued.

"It's something out of Lightning Country...one of the signature jutsu of the Fourth Raikage, known as the fastest living shinobi. According to historical records, the only person said to be faster than him was the Fourth Hokage, the man who was called the Yellow Flash. This jutsu I speak of is normally used for a fighting style called nintaijutsu. It's called Lightning Relase Chakra Mode."

I glare at him. This isn't the time for jokes. "And what, pray tell, makes you think I could learn something like that?"

"Well...it's actually on the same level of difficulty as a jutsu you already know," he says with a nod.

"..." I blink and calm down. So that was it...I really hadn't considered that angle, for whatever reason. Kakashi is intelligent enough not to offer something so far out of my grasp. B-Rank, though...it seems a bit absurd. "And Chidori? What about that?"

"That's an A-Rank jutsu, so a level above that. I would say...A-Rank Level 1, roughly."

"Sounds like it would be a bother to learn. That power would be good to have...however, I can also consider the strong and versatile supplementary jutsu. Hm."

"I won't be forcing you to make a choice on the spot. We can talk again tomorrow, or any other day you choose, and you also have the option to decline completely if you wish. To be honest with you...I'd like to see the results of at least one of these so that I can figure out a strategy for training Sasuke later."

I give him a critical look. "And you don't think it would incense that boy if he found out you were teaching his sworn enemy?"

"Eh. I don't care how he feels about that."

"You're quite irresponsible."

"That's harsh."

"I'm speaking to you as an equal," I remind him.

He sighs and shakes his head, pulling out his book again and reading. "Well, I don't have anything else to say today. Give me your answer when you're free. I'll be hanging around the usual places."

"Understood. I will see you later then, Kakashi."

He waves goodbye with one hand, and I glance at the memorial stone as I leave.

---

"Lord Hokage will see you now."

I get up from my seat in the lobby, and follow the secretary to the Hokage's office. It's spacious, without much in the way of furniture, and oval. There's a large window behind the main desk, allowing a view of the entire village. This place is also located in the Academy complex, which explains how the old man could visit classrooms and students so frequently. There are comfortable looking chairs in front of the big wooden desk, which has stacks of paperwork on it.

"Please, have a seat," the Hokage says. I nod and do so. "Now...the reason you're here. On the last mission, you managed to kill thirty nine of those bandits without harm to yourself. Quite an impressive feat, to say nothing of your quick application of first aid and delay tactics."

"Thank you, Lord Hokage."

He nods and puffs on his pipe a bit. "Tell me...did you enjoy yourself that time?"

For a moment, I think about what the correct answer is supposed to be. But only for a moment. "I did, Lord Hokage. I enjoyed myself quite a bit."

"Hm. And now? How do you feel, looking back on that incident?"

"I...think about the possibilities of the next challenge ahead. With the heat of that moment gone...I do not dwell on it. And I do not worry about replicating it."

"..."

I gather myself and stare directly into his eyes. I want him to see me. "That is the type of person I am, my lord. I eat until I'm satisfied. No more...no less."

"...I see." A few more puffs on his pipe as we both go silent. He studies me, and seems quite interested in what he's reading. "You carry yourself in a way that most adults are unable to. Some crack under the strain of killing, others lose their minds completely. Still others struggle to draw the line between their feelings in battle and their feelings in life. There's a switch that exists within your mind...I see that you can reach it at will."

"..." That much should be expected from the Hokage. He sees a lot at once.

"You almost remind me of a former student of mine. A genius, and very clinical with jutsu. He took a cold, pragmatic approach to battle. But the reason why I say 'almost'...is that you carry a love for your comrades that he never did. He tried, but he never could truly understand those feelings...there is something I want to consider. After that event, you should think about advancing up the ranks."

"In what way, my lord?"

"Hm." He strokes his chin in thought. "Ah, yes. Do you have an interest of some sort? A dream that you would like to see come to pass in the near future?"

"...well. I would like the opportunity to travel the world one day. And also...find a wife in that time," I say. If he's as connected to the village as people say, he already knows about my preferences.

"Travel and women," he says with a smile. "That sounds like a man's romance, alright. It would be easy enough to get you there, but I don't think I can give up a genius like you to the winds just yet."

I expected that reply. It's not an issue, as I still have plenty of growing to do. "Understood, sir."

"The options that I have in front of you are simple...first, since I have no doubt that you will soon become a chuunin, I would like to put you on the track to becoming a jounin once your promotion is finalized. And the other option...is for you to become a member of our Black Ops."

"ANBU...?"

"Yes. You'll be given a code name, and you will deal with the usual things in covert operations. As such, you will be unable to mention anything about your new position to your team, if you should choose to stay with them in addition to your extra duties. Some choose to live a double life, since the schedules are quite flexible. ANBU members vary, some are more specialized in one area more than others. But generally speaking, all of them have strong individual skills and can handle themselves in most situations."

"I understand the recommendations for jounin pass through you, but...you wouldn't consider my age when speaking of the ANBU?"

"The organization has no regard for age. Only ability," the Hokage says with a smile.

So it's like that, then. "How this works...if I have it correct, sir. In the one case as a chuunin or jounin I would be able to function as I normally would with my team. As ANBU...it would be possible still, but more difficult. Thus it would be more prudent to work alone, especially with the difficulty and danger present in these sorts of missions."

"Yes, that is all correct."

"And these are things I should consider for my future...meaning I should think about the time that I have left." I take a breath in. "Lord Hokage? May I...have some time to think about these things?"

"Of course, of course. I wasn't planning on making you choose right here, or anywhere near that soon."

"Thank you, sir."

"That was all that I needed from you, Lili. Please take your time with this decision, and thank you for coming to see me."

I nod and leave my seat.

"Oh, and a favour, if you would."

"Yes?" I ask.

"Please send my greetings to Princess Midoriko," he says with a warm smile.

'Princess', then...how curious. "Hm." I give the Hokage a smile back. "Of course. I will promptly send onee-sama your greetings, Lord Hokage."

 

[Khona Moshr]

I will laugh if by the time we get to part 2 it turns out that Lili pushes her body too hard and because the smallest member of the cast.

Through one thing I am curious about is how Orchimaru will react to someone who isn't loyal to him having a contract with the snakes and if he will try to either give lili a curse seal to turn her or just try to kill her

 

[FortePlus]

I will laugh if by the time we get to part 2 it turns out that Lili pushes her body too hard and because the smallest member of the cast.

Through one thing I am curious about is how Orchimaru will react to someone who isn't loyal to him having a contract with the snakes and if he will try to either give lili a curse seal to turn her or just try to kill her

Click to shrink...

A possibility, yes. There's some snake world stuff happening behind the curtain, but I'm trying to keep it at least a little mysterious. Partly because I'm afraid of ending up in sideplot hell at least before the promised time

 

[FortePlus]

Scarlet Justice - ep. 24
"Airs and Graces"
---

As part of my plan, I pay a neighbourhood child 1000 ryo - a queenly sum, for her - to set up a checkpoint for Tora. If this works, it will slowly bring an end to a proud Leaf 'tradition', but some sacrifices must be made for the good of all.

D-Rank missions for the day include trash collection, lawn cutting, and document transport. All easily done within a few hours, and Kurenai dismisses us for the day as a result. She has a maximum mission load set out for us and these days we've consistently met it before afternoon can arrive. Naruto tells me he's bored with these, but I find them relaxing and sometimes fun. Connecting with thankful people is always nice, and I have a feeling that these little things will help me in the future.

Now that the day is free, I think about what I would like to do for the rest of it. Spending all of my time at home might not be the most productive thing...hm.

Actually...I do know what I want to do. It's not very nice at all, but it's something before I turn in. Naruto can help me with this...ah, just as I think of him. There he is.

"Hey, Lili!"

"Good timing. I was looking for you," I say as I cross the street to meet him.

"Y-yeah? What for?" he asks eagerly.

"I was wondering if you knew where Sakura was."

"Eh? She's having tea or something with Ino. I guess she's gonna brag about Sasuke, or whatever," he says while making a face. "Bah. Who needs that idiot loser anyways...I'm the heart and soul of Team Seven! Oh, sorry. I actually gotta go, Kakashi-sensei said he wanted to see me about something today. Those two are down the road to your right," Naruto says as he runs off. "See ya, Lili!"

"Yes, goodbye. And thank you," I call after him. He seems to be staying out of trouble for the most part. Good.

Now that I have my target, it's time to begin.

I head down the street as Naruto instructed, and look over to my right for the place mentioned. Ino's blonde hair is visible as I approach; she sits on a patio with Sakura across from her at a table. Oh...and there's a third chair, sitting empty.

How deliciously convenient.

I suppose it's time to really lean into my persona...seeing as everyone already has their own thoughts on me, it certainly won't hurt anything. "Sakura, Ino. It's nice to see you both again," I say as I approach.

"Lili? Wow, it's been a while!" Ino says in greeting. "What are you up to?"

"Nothing at the moment, we finished our missions for the day. I did have a few meetings yesterday, though. With Lord Hokage and Kakashi-sensei."

"Ooh, look at you. Moving up in the world already, huh?"

"What did Kakashi-sensei want to talk to you about?" Sakura asks. She's trying to hide it, but I can read her easily. She's bothered by my presence.

"It's mostly between us. But a bit of it was praise for my abilities."

"Hey, if you're not doing anything right now, sit with us!" Ino says.

I watch Sakura's face twist up for a moment before settling into a sunny, welcoming smile. "Yeah, like Ino said...come sit with us for a while."

"If you're insisting, then I shall." I go around the barrier and seat myself in the empty chair, between Ino and Sakura. Putting my elbows on the table, I rest my head on my folded hands. "Have you both ordered already? I'll pick up the bill today, if you don't mind."

"Really? But this'll be coming out of your mission pay, so we should split it up, at least," Ino says.

I shake my head. "It's fine. I haven't touched my payment yet, and it was rather large...worth a B-Rank mission at the least."

"Oh? Your mission was supposed to be a C-Rank, right? That sounds super generous. We haven't been going for anything too difficult just yet. Asuma-sensei is starting us off slow. He's the Hokage's son, you know."

"Hm. Interesting."

"He's pretty nice, if a bit rugged sometimes. You know those sorts of guys who look like they go fishing every weekend and drink beers on the dock? That's what he looks like, I think. But all I know so far is that Shikamaru is a lazy bum, like the worst, and Choji can't stop eating. Ugh. It's just so much..."

"Seems like your team is a handful."

"You can say that twice. Sakura was telling me about her wild mission, though. We were going on about it before you got here, Lili."

"Naruto told me about it the other day," I say to her.

"Neat. Speaking of him...it's crazy how he managed to get this far. I mean, not only managing to graduate, but going up against powerful enemies and stuff. I dunno...my opinion on him's changed. I'm starting to think that he's not that far behind Sasuke..."

I can see Sakura twitch a bit at the edge of my vision.

"Then again, the year's been full of surprises. Look at you, Lili. You came out of nowhere and beat the daylights out of him. Oh, let's make our orders now." Ino nods to the waiter who appears before us, and we all select our teas and treats.

"An extra bottle of milk, also," I say before the young man can leave. He nods and adds it to the list before going.

"So, yeah...Sasuke. I think he's cute, but...well, I'm really not as obsessed with him as I used to be. Ehe...maybe I'm a bit bitter that Sakura gets to spend like, every day with him now! Totally unfair!" Ino says, pouting playfully.

"It was a lucky draw, I guess," Sakura says with a smile. "But I'm okay with a bit of luck..."

I lean back in my chair. "You can't rely on just that, you know. Talent can be overcome with hard work, and hard work can be defeated just as easily with pure talent. There are gaps that are sometimes too big to cross...I'm sure you understand more than most, Sakura."

"..." She stares at me but says nothing.

"Although, from what I know...you did a very good job protecting that old man. Teamwork is key, and you played your part," I say to her sweetly.

"That's true," Ino adds. "I mean, our team relies on teamwork, pretty much a matter of life and death in the field. Sensei says as much anyways, and my dad loves to remind me these days. I wonder how long it'll take for us to get even half as good as our parents. Heh. Aside from all the dumb training and drills and stuff, I'm pretty into this shinobi thing. I get to use some of my passions, too! That's exciting, right?"

"Very much so," I reply. "Sakura, what about you? Would you say the same?"

"I...guess I would, yeah," she replies timidly.

"Mm...going back to silly boys for a moment," Ino says with a smile, "I have a question for Lili."

"Yes, Ino. Whatever your heart desires."

"You're too much sometimes. Okay, then...have you ever been confessed to? Here, or anywhere?"

I close my eyes and think, knowing the answer but making sure I didn't miss anything. "No, never. I was quite lonely as a child...I think it was my disposition. That, and I could never smile properly."

"Oh, yeah...that creepy smile you gave us at the beginning of last year. Sheesh. I can see why people would avoid you in that case. But what about here, has anyone said anything?"

"I know that I have a few girls that admire me from afar, for certain reasons. But they were never open about it because of my status. I guess...there's one person who I know likes me."

"Ah? Tell us, tell us!" Ino demands.

"..." Sakura is interested as well. Our tea arrives and Ino eagerly stirs in her sugar while waiting for my answer.

"I know that Naruto...has a thing for me. Just don't mention it outside of here, alright?"

"Naruto? That makes sense, he does talk about you a lot and always seems really happy to see you. So? Will you...?"

"I let him down easy."

"I see. That's good of you, Lili. He's a weirdo, but...sort of sweet in his own way, I think. It'd really suck to see him moping around."

"He's free to dream of me as he likes, but...I can't oblige him as I am," I say pointedly to Ino.

"Eh...eh?" Ino stops her stirring and looks at me oddly for a moment. Then her expression changes, eyes widening as she comes to an understanding. "Ehhhhhh?"

"Yes, that's right."

Sakura is confused. "Ino, what are you on about?"

"That makes sense...that all makes sense. So you're a lesbian, I get it."

"Wait, you mean that she...she likes..."

"Yes. I like girls," I say plainly. "You personally don't have anything to worry about from me." I stir milk into my tea. "As for guys...even if I did have any interest in them, I wouldn't dream of choosing someone like Sasuke."

Sakura glares at me on cue. "And what's wrong with Sasuke?" Predictably defensive of her dream boyfriend.

"He would never be my type, even if I was a masochist...which I'm not." No, I'm very clearly on the other end of that particular spectrum. Well...as far as I know...

"Why don't you speak plainly?" Sakura demands. I let her rant and stir sugar into my tea leisurely.

"Honestly, there's no need to get so worked up," Ino says. "And with the bad blood between them, can you blame her for being harsh?"

"Sasuke is my teammate, Ino. I don't think it would be right to let some girl talk trash about him in front of me." As opposed to talking behind someone's back. Classy, Miss Haruno.

"You're clearly more upset about my remarks towards him than you are about your lack of skill."

She flinches. That one hurt. "Insult me all you want...you're just proving him right."

It seems she wants more. Fine. "Oh? So you're deluded as well. You think that I'm looking down on you because I have the ability to display my strength. Do you want me to show you what arrogance truly is?" I say, staring at her. If she wants to dance, I will make this useless doll dance until her feet swell up.

"Sasuke risked his life on that mission, which is way more than you could do. You think that because you looked a little cool and beat him in the Academy one time, or got really high grades, that you can demean him and insult the rest of us? Who do you think you are?"

"Sakura, seriously. You're getting way too worked up over this. All she said was that she wouldn't pick Sasuke if she was into guys at all. And we know she isn't. Okay, let's simmer down and change the subject a bit. You can still appreciate a cute guy, right, Lili?"

"Of course. Good aesthetic has no boundary."

"Aha! I like that. For example, our waiter definitely has a nice face...and other things I've noticed, but would be a little rude to mention in public," Ino says with a wink. "So. Who out of the guys do you think is the cutest?"

I turn my head and make sure to look at Sakura as I speak. "The person I'm thinking of...someone very sweet. Naruto would be my first choice."

"Naruto...wow, that's an interesting choice. How come?" Ino asks.

"Well, when you really look at a person...you can see them for who they are. He's a charming boy, a little rugged, but cute to look at. And good, lovely eyes," I say. "Very sincere in everything he does."

"Hmm...can't say I disagree. Give him a few years and some styling tips, he'll knock the ladies dead. Yeah, I think that's a solid pick on the whole."

"Do you have anything to add, Sakura?" I ask. "Or have you not looked at him once? You seem to be quite preoccupied with Sasuke and getting his attention. Haven't you realized that someone like that doesn't care about you? He has other things on his mind."

"You take that ba-"

"And you...especially someone like you. How can you ever question what I've done? How much blood have you spilled, Sakura Haruno?"

"I..."

I lean forward in my chair. "I can recall...all of it. Every. Single. Drop."

She shrinks backwards.

"Know your place," I say firmly. "You speak too much and are far too arrogant for your station. I stand above you in every, and I do mean every aspect."

"..." She can say nothing, only glaring at me and stewing in her seat. There's nothing she can say to counter me. Pathetic. How dare she even think of pushing herself against me.

"That was a bit harsh, wasn't it?" Ino says. "Sakura might have gone a bit too far, but...mm." Sakura is her friend, but it's clear that she's fallen to my side this time.

"Ino, you know better," I say gently. "Nothing I've said was a lie. If I wanted to, I have many other methods of tearing someone apart."

"She's got me there, Sakura. This isn't even close to how sharp she can get."

"I'm...I'm not the same person from the Academy," Sakura growls at me. "Your words don't mean anything to me. Sasuke is a much stronger person, and so am I!"

She's going to say something she will regret later. Blinded by her pain and wounded ego. The next move is...

"Why don't you put your big money where your mouth is, then?"

And finally, the climax.

"I'm challenging you, you stuck-up bitch!"

Yes. There it is.

"Sakura! Think about what you're saying for a second, you idiot forehead!"

"Cram it, piggie! I've already made up my mind!"

Ino huffs and waves her away. "Fine, whatever. Your funeral."

"What is it, rich girl? You gonna run away? You probably think you're too good to fight me. Go ahead and say it. Give up before we even start, like little princesses always do!"

I didn't think things would escalate to this level...well, alright. That's a lie. I was eagerly hoping they would get to this level, and I would have an excuse to bully this trash. I'm having a lot of fun right now.

I take a long sip of tea and sigh for effect before answering. "I'll think about obliging you. I have some more errands to run during the week, so..."

"You-"

"I'll have to show up to this too, won't I?" Ino yells, interrupting us. "Ugh! The worst! Fine, I'll even drag my lazy idiot team with me to supervise. Just make sure it's actually happening, alright? I gotta wash my hair properly after all these missions, you know?"

"I understand your struggle," I say to her. Draining my teacup, I dab at my mouth with a napkin. "Well. I won't agitate you any further, Miss Haruno. After all, you're Sasuke's number one fan...and he does need a cheering section, from what I understand."

"Tch...!"

"I'll let you know what's happening soon. Thank you both for having me. Sakura," I say dismissively as I stand up. "And...Ino."

"Hm?" I lean over and plant a friendly kiss on her cheek. She blushes a bit.

"See you in a while, then?"

"Yeah, for sure. Take care, Lili," she says with a smile.

I give Sakura a side eye look as she stares at me, confused and vulnerable. I want to push her. I want to make her tremble. I want her to look at me and think it...that I could steal away her best friend any time that I want.

She's too easy.

With a smile, I flip my hair over my shoulder. And I keep my promise, leaving more than enough money on the table to cover their expenses as a gift before leaving.

Yes. I'm an awful girl. But...I'm also awfully satisfied right now.

Ah. Such is life.

---

Luna isn't home as I return, so I decide to finish up my manga reading. It has a good looking heroine as the lead character, and balances everything with its action. I like it a lot and resolve to buy the next volume soon.

"..."

Although I also wonder about that book Kakashi was reading. I suppose I should look into it...for research purposes, of course.

The next day comes, and Luna is off. She sleeps in and I make myself breakfast. Kurenai has scheduled a quick D-Rank for today, planting flowers for an elderly woman. We end up in front of a modest wooden house with a front yard.

"..."

These flowers are all the same, and it's mainly the girls carefully planting while Shino gathers and moves supplies. The garden is well set up, with a system for delivering water and semi-moist soil that we dig into while planting. We finish fairly quickly and step back a moment to admire our work.

Camellia plants.

"Thank you for your hard work. There isn't much money here," the old woman says.

"..." I think for a moment. "Oba-san, if I could make a request."

"Yes, dear."

"In lieu of money...oil will do for me." The camellia plant, aside from its beauty, has many practical uses. One of its products is good quality oil from its seeds, which is used for cooking, to maintain blades, and to help grow strong and healthy hair.

"I feel the same," Hinata adds in.

"Same here," Kurenai says.

Shino seems confused as the old woman nods and heads back inside. She gives him his payment, and hands bottles of oil to myself, Hinata, and Kurenai. After exchanging bows, she waves us goodbye.

"You requested oil. Why?" Shino asks me. I look over to Kurenai and Hinata, and we share a knowing smile.

"It's a girl thing," we say in unison. Shino pushes up his glasses.

"I see. We all have our secrets, then."

Ino did say she was worried about her hair...hmhm. This will make a nice, luxurious present, and serve my ulterior motives quite nicely.

 

[nyktos]

Seeing her interact with the main cast is always wonderful to see. I hope that after Sakura loses she starts taking training seriously.

 

[FortePlus]

Seeing her interact with the main cast is always wonderful to see. I hope that after Sakura loses she starts taking training seriously.

Click to shrink...

That's good, those parts are among my favourite to write out.

Sakura is a pretty stubborn person, probably a lot worse than Naruto or Sasuke when she's really going for it. Could go either way.

 

[Deveritas]

I kind of feel like this is starting to head into bashing territory for Sakura or Sasuke, though - especially for post-wave.

Sasuke is in turn obsessed with only two things: gaining more power, and crushing you.

Click to shrink...

Click to shrink...

Like, this might be accurate for just after graduation, but wave had Sasuke (thinking that he was) taking a lethal blow for Naruto. We haven't heard anything about Itachi showing up to throw a wrench into his slowly-repairing headspace, so either Kakashi's factually wrong, he's lying to Lili for no apparent reason, something went really different in wave, or this story is taking all the nuance (and interesting bits) out of his character.

"Very much so," I reply. "Sakura, what about you? Would you say the same?"

"I...guess I would, yeah," she replies timidly.

Click to shrink...

And this whole conversation feels very strawman-ish. Unless you're planning on having Sakura really surprise Lili with her skill or something like that - not necessarily winning, just doing better than Lili expected - this is just starting to read as Fanon Sakura the cheerleader, not Canon Sakura.

"Do you have anything to add, Sakura?" I ask. "Or have you not looked at him once? You seem to be quite preoccupied with Sasuke and getting his attention.

Click to shrink...

Are we supposed to be on Lili's side here? Because the narration and protagonist understandably are, but I'm not, and I don't get why Ino - who is hearing Lili insult her friend and her friend's teammate - is. There's something about Sakura "going too far" as an explanation when Ino speaks up, but I don't see anything that could be referring to. Talking back to someone who's insulting her to her face? Is that supposed to be it?

On a meta level, wave is when Sakura and Sasuke start to actually respect Naruto. It's when Sasuke first shows his protectiveness towards his team, and it's when Sakura (and Naruto) learn what being a shinobi's really about. I just don't understand why you've chosen these parts to happen now, when this could've happened before wave?

There's a lot of things I love in this story - how ninshu's actually a thing that exists, you've managed to make a pretty good balance in your tone, that you've drawn a sharp line between sadist (Lili) and sociopath (Orochimaru) - but creating two-dimensional caricatures of people and then only critiquing them on flaws that exist in those caricatures is a pretty quick way to make me stop being interested in the story.

I know you can write interesting characters. Luna's great in how she (tries to) take no shit from Lili, Lili's mom is surprisingly deep, and Lili herself is an interesting bundle of issues - at least, when she isn't tearing into characters about flaws they don't have. But Sakura, Sasuke, and even Sarutobi, Kakashi, Kurenai and Hinata feel like you just grabbed two or three traits out of the character and called it a personality.

I want to like this story, but sometimes it just feels that's despite the story's best efforts.

 

[FortePlus]

Well alright, I appreciate you taking the time out to provide commentary on the story. I don't know what I can really fix if anything, but I'm going to take what you've said into account.

Like, this might be accurate for just after graduation, but wave had Sasuke (thinking that he was) taking a lethal blow for Naruto. We haven't heard anything about Itachi showing up to throw a wrench into his slowly-repairing headspace, so either Kakashi's factually wrong, he's lying to Lili for no apparent reason, something went really different in wave, or this story is taking all the nuance (and interesting bits) out of his character.

Click to shrink...

Kakashi is offering his thoughts on the situation. So he's aware of what's happening with Naruto and Sasuke, but his observations are also that Sasuke's pride has been severely hurt from being thrashed twice, and he hasn't forgotten it. This isn't all there is to his character, but without hanging out with him we don't get to see that. The Sasuke here is a bit different from canon at the point of the fight in the Academy in addition to all that. So he still has much of the same traits, but there are new wrinkles to consider with the major incidents that have happened. I offered in story explanation for why that might be the case, but I understand if that is not satisfactory either.

And this whole conversation feels very strawman-ish. Unless you're planning on having Sakura really surprise Lili with her skill or something like that - not necessarily winning, just doing better than Lili expected - this is just starting to read as Fanon Sakura the cheerleader, not Canon Sakura.

Click to shrink...

I guess. Wave Country didn't have her grow all that much from what I can remember, so we're still at the phase where she's lagging behind the others somewhat. The conversation itself at that point is being controlled by Lili, who is clearly more socially trained than Sakura and is pushing her around as often as possible. Again, we don't see Sakura's angle and aren't very likely to, which happens with the perspective that the story is being told from. I can think about that part of the writing, but I don't expect a drastic change even if I do.

Are we supposed to be on Lili's side here? Because the narration and protagonist understandably are, but I'm not, and I don't get why Ino - who is hearing Lili insult her friend and her friend's teammate - is. There's something about Sakura "going too far" as an explanation when Ino speaks up, but I don't see anything that could be referring to. Talking back to someone who's insulting her to her face? Is that supposed to be it?

On a meta level, wave is when Sakura and Sasuke start to actually respect Naruto. It's when Sasuke first shows his protectiveness towards his team, and it's when Sakura (and Naruto) learn what being a shinobi's really about. I just don't understand why you've chosen these parts to happen now, when this could've happened before wave?

Click to shrink...

So as far as "being on Lili's side", you are not required to be. I did put some effort into indicating that she was being selfish and bullying Sakura. There is spite there and it's laid out.

Ino and Lili I have always seen as the same "type", more than Ino and Sakura who are still friends, but with the former treating the latter like a project at times, up to the point where they started fighting over Sasuke. So when the two started talking and holding conversation after Ino's initial turn, I felt it would make sense for them to be friends. Because of that, I think that Ino would try to temper Sakura while operating on a similar "level" as Lili and speaking that way. Her perception of Sasuke has also cooled considerably since the beginning of the story because of his actions - which as above I offered explanation for but might not satisfy you in that way. That's why she's letting things go in that conversation. 'Going too far' is reference to the earlier parts of the conversation like 'you're just proving him right' and the other accusations of Lili being purposely arrogant, which slide back to Sasuke's outburst at the Academy. I again refer to Iruka's in story explanation because it's something a lot of the children believed was happening, even if it actually wasn't.

As for meta stuff...well, I did outright have Sakura praise Naruto while speaking to Lili, on the way back to the Leaf after their mission. So there's a clear indicator that she doesn't see Naruto in the same way as she did before. Sasuke got no input because Lili hates his guts and didn't even point her face in his direction. So from that perspective and Kakashi being mum, there's really not much aside from shoving exposition into the story to show us, from Lili's viewpoint, that meta side of the story.

One more thing I will discuss here is the tone and nature of the scenes in this chapter. The social friction between people and groups is something that I've touched on, and scenes like this don't happen in the manga or what I remember of the anime. It's usually just light slice of life stuff or melodrama if anything. There's a pressure applied by the main character that forces scenes like this to break one way or another. The Sakura who had her big resolve moments, to me, hasn't arrived yet, and Ino has been her rival for a while. So I decided to break in the direction of a Sakura who is trying to be self-confident in the way she was briefly taught, but falls back to her base emotions when shoved hard in the way she was. She's going to look bad because she's being picked apart in this chapter.

But Sakura, Sasuke, and even Sarutobi, Kakashi, Kurenai and Hinata feel like you just grabbed two or three traits out of the character and called it a personality.

Click to shrink...

Very little I can do about this, especially with the introductions I've given for some of these characters listed. I suppose the only thing I can do is give more time and space for these people to grow within the narrative, but that's really it.

I want to like this story, but sometimes it just feels that's despite the story's best efforts.

Click to shrink...

Alright. Well again thanks for your comments. If you would like to stick around, then that's fine. If not, then I appreciate you taking the time out to read this far.

 

[Deveritas]

...
Alright. Well again thanks for your comments. If you would like to stick around, then that's fine. If not, then I appreciate you taking the time out to read this far.

Click to shrink...

No problem, and I'm not planning on leaving yet! If I thought your story was bad, I wouldn't even be here anymore. Hearing you say that a lot of this is because of Lili's limited point of view has me feeling better about the story.

The Sakura who had her big resolve moments, to me, hasn't arrived yet

Click to shrink...

I completely agree , but I feel like a lot of the groundwork was laid in wave. It's hard for me to tell, because early sakura is so much less bombastic than anyone else on her team.

Very little I can do about this, especially with the introductions I've given for some of these characters listed. I suppose the only thing I can do is give more time and space for these people to grow within the narrative, but that's really it.

Click to shrink...

I actually want to apologize for this - I feel like I didn't communicate my point clearly and that it had come across more harshly than I meant it.

I don't have any problem with using caricatures. Having full-fledged characters takes up narrative weight and time, and while that can definitely be a bad thing! In a visual medium, multiple things can happen at the same point in the narrative (e.g. stuff in the background of the comic panel), but in a linear medium like a story spending the time to go into Kakashi's eating habits just takes up time that could be spent on more important characters.

Characters can also move back and forth from characters to caricatures as their narrative weight in the plot changes. A great example of this is Midoriko. She started as a full character, but during Lili's time at the academy moved into a background role, and now has stepped forwards again (a bit).

My real issue was when Lili was calling out Sakura, while the arguments she was using could have been ones the character was saying, I've seen it too often that the character was just the author's mouthpiece for the author's incorrect viewpoint on who Sakura is.

So, yeah - I'm really happy you took the time to respond to my thoughts, and that it seems like it's an issue between Lili and Sakura, not you and Kishimoto. (If that makes sense.)

TL;DR: I'm liking the story and it's good to hear you have the same grasp of the characters as when Iruka was talking to Luna and Lili about Sasuke, but I saw a couple yellow flags pop up and wanted to make sure that they were intentional instead of being born out of ignorance.

TLDRTL;DRTLDR: Story good, conflict good, fandom trauma bad.

 

[FortePlus]

No problem, and I'm not planning on leaving yet! If I thought your story was bad, I wouldn't even be here anymore. Hearing you say that a lot of this is because of Lili's limited point of view has me feeling better about the story.

Click to shrink...

It's cool. I realize now how that might have come across as hostile, maybe? But I don't want to force anyone to do one thing or another. Glad I could answer some of your questions about the process.

completely agree , but I feel like a lot of the groundwork was laid in wave. It's hard for me to tell, because early sakura is so much less bombastic than anyone else on her team.

Click to shrink...

Fair enough and I can see how you came to that conclusion. I can admit that I run a little with certain things like everyone else, but try to temper it with concepts from the story proper. If I can make it just look seamless, that means I got away with it

I actually want to apologize for this - I feel like I didn't communicate my point clearly and that it had come across more harshly than I meant it.

Click to shrink...

I actually do see what you mean, and for me it's a novel way to look at those sorts of things, so I learned something out of that. I definitely do shift characters in and out of roles to help move the story ahead or put emphasis on certain things - not everyone can be on stage at the same time sometimes. So it's fine.

I also understand why you were apprehensive about my treatment of certain characters, and I sympathize with that. It seems weird considering how I've put the light on him so far, but I actually like Sasuke as a character as much as I do Ino, or Naruto (who at one point was the hardest character to get down imo) or Sakura etc etc. For example, I'm working on another project where two of my favourite characters in A and Jiraiya are pitted against the MC and their allies, and really seem like aggressive, unreasonable pricks at times from the MC perspective. Characters I think I can bend enough without losing them completely might get that bend, Sasuke and Sakura are such characters. Others like Ino will have an expansion, like how I've focused more on her social prowess rather than the catty behaviour and headstrong sorts of actions that were more necessary in Kishimoto-sensei's work. And if I think I can't do anything without reason, I leave a character alone or provide snippets of them so they can pop with the crowd whenever they do appear. I mentioned 'time' in my commentary because some characters pop quickly like Emi, others will take a bit longer as we look at them.

So, yeah - I'm really happy you took the time to respond to my thoughts, and that it seems like it's an issue between Lili and Sakura, not you and Kishimoto. (If that makes sense.)

Click to shrink...

Yeah, that's alright. As mentioned before, I tried to indicate "wow, Lili is being a real bitch, isn't she" without turning it into "NOW ENTERING THE BULLY ZONE", as I assume people don't want to be hit over the head with what's happening. I never like it myself when that happens.

I'm liking the story and it's good to hear you have the same grasp of the characters as when Iruka was talking to Luna and Lili about Sasuke, but I saw a couple yellow flags pop up and wanted to make sure that they were intentional instead of being born out of ignorance.

Click to shrink...

Of course. Actually, it's good that you asked those sorts of questions since I did have a lot of answers for them, just in my head and typing them out helps solidify them in a way. Forces my hand if I don't have an answer to the question, and so I know what I need to work on in the future. I appreciate your commentary and again hope I didn't come off as too hostile or "get out", stuff like that. But I also don't like to disappoint people who have legitimate questions by folding over and apologizing instead of bringing my ideas and concepts to the front.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the read, and ask more questions if you have them.

 

[FortePlus]

timely chapter or some sort of dark magic, you decide

Scarlet Justice - ep. 25
"Hard Knocks"
---

Another day passes. We train in shurikenjutsu and chakra control from early morning until noon. Hinata is working at a steady pace, determined not to drag anyone down ever again. Kurenai makes her slow down, while Shino is his usual self and chips away at his weak areas.

"..."

As for myself, I wonder if I'm ready for the upcoming challenge. There's a lot to consider here...a lot that could go wrong. Perhaps my growth might be stunted, or altered badly. But I also have faith in the training that got me to this point. I feel that if anything does go wrong, I will be able to fix it, and make something of myself no matter what.

"Have to wonder what Kakashi's up to this time," Kurenai says to me as we cool down. "He's definitely a pragmatist, so him taking an interest in you is for a simple enough reason. Well, to him anyways. I wouldn't know what he's thinking at any given time."

"Hm. You seem to be okay with this," I say to her.

"It's normal. If there are specialists available for kids, or there's a teacher that sees some sort of potential in you, we encourage you to go out and train with them. Guys like Kakashi, especially. Dunno about how good he really is as an instructor, but when it comes to individuals he has plenty of tools to hand out. I suspect that's why Sasuke ended up with him in the first place."

"Ino was telling me about how the team system worked."

"Yeah? Ino's a good kid, very observant, too. Takes after her dad, which is a great thing. If she doesn't follow in his footsteps, she could be a really great covert operator. And there are people in ANBU that you don't know are in ANBU, so I think that could suit her, too. She has the work ethic."

"I see."

"Alright, kids. That's enough for the day," Kurenai calls to Hinata and Shino. They gather their weapons and hustle back towards us. "Still can't tell me about your secret thing with the Hokage?"

"No. But I have already come to a decision on that end. It will make you happy, I assume."

"Lots of things can make me happy."

"Hopefully ones that can be discussed in polite company?"

"Shut up, seriously." She rolls her eyes as my teammates join us.

"Sensei...I think I can-"

"Out of the question," Kurenai says, interrupting Hina. "Pack up, go home, and rest. That's an order, Miss Hyuuga."

"Yes, ma'am. I'll see everyone tomorrow, then." She smiles and bows for us before heading home. Shino quietly salutes before doing the same.

"Mission coming up later. Nothing too big, fortunately...should be done by the end of the day. I'll see you tomorrow, Lili."

"Of course. Take care, sensei."

We part ways, and I head over to Training Field Three. Kakashi is there, reading his book while leaning against one of the logs used for training exercises. He doesn't lift his head even as I stop in front of him.

"I'm going to learn the Lightning Release Chakra Mode," I say.

"Yeah...I figured as much. Here," he says as he tosses me a scroll. "This is the research that's been done on it within the Leaf. It's pretty detailed. I personally can't help you too much with it, at least when it comes to fine mechanics and the like, but if you show up around this time next week, we can check out your progress together."

"..." So it's all up to me, then. If I learned one B-Rank jutsu, I should be able to learn another. Believe in myself. "Understood, thank you."

"Also...I heard about something happening later on. You and Sakura are going to get into it?"

"Something like that," I say. "Are you going to stop us?"

"No. In fact, I didn't hear a word about any of this from you," he says casually.

"Hmph. Trying to avoid trouble?"

"You could say that."

"You really are irresponsible. Ino and her merry men are going to be there anyways, so we'll be well supervised without your presence. I don't mean to make a spectacle of her."

"Right. Hopefully this will be a bit of motivation for Sakura."

"You're expecting her to lose."

"Naturally. She's my student, and she's done well recently. But I'm not deluded about her progress. That girl is nowhere close to an elite."

"Hm."

"Anyways, if you want to use the field here, go all out. And again, I heard nothing. Good luck with your lesson, sensei."

I shake my head and walk away. What a guy.

---

"Lord Hokage will see you now."

The secretary lets me into the office. I take a seat and clear my throat.

"I will be concise, Lord Hokage."

"Please, go ahead," he says as he sets down his pen to look at me.

"I've spent too much of my life in the darkness, alone and fighting to find myself. Becoming a member of the ANBU would be an honour and a great opportunity offered to few others. I understand the weight of responsibility that comes from the position. But...right now, I want to walk in the light with my comrades, and the people that I love dearly. I want to let them know how my days went, and hold them close to me at nights. I want to live life as myself, and not partitioned between 'Lili' and a given code name. The shadows are not the place I belong. Not any longer. Since you're not willing to let me out of your sight, I'll instead become a leader that you can be proud of."

He nods. "Very well. All I ask is that you continue to grow in strength, and remain as spirited as you are now."

"Yes, Lord Hokage." I incline my head. "If you should choose to make me a jounin of the village, I will accept your recommendation wholeheartedly, and give my all for this home and the people who live in it."

"Good, good. I appreciate your courage and commitment, Lili. Please remember that. Do your best in the upcoming trials, and show everyone what I see in you."

"I shall, Lord Hokage."

With a deep bow, I leave his office. I let out a breath the moment I get outside.

Turning down an offer to be a true elite...well, it's not all glory and fame, anyways. So that might have made the decision easier. But even so, I've committed to this life now. The first step is becoming a chuunin, and bringing my friends upwards with me. Stronger comrades for a stronger village.

"..."

I'm not perfect, however. I still have my sharp angles that will cut those who don't approach with caution. Balancing the person I am with leadership...that is something I will also have to work on. It doesn't matter how strong I am if I can't foster cooperation. This upcoming fight with Sakura could be a means to help with that sort of thing, if I play it right. Or I'll simply beat her senseless and look like even more of a bully.

"Troublesome, honestly." I sigh and spin the scroll from earlier on my finger as I walk home. Hopefully Luna is home to cook something. Chakra control training always makes me very hungry for some reason.

---

We take a proper C-Rank this time to guard a shipment of iron that's come down from the northern part of the country. It takes a little over half a day total to go, escort the merchant and his shipment, and reach the village again without incident. We debrief, get our normal rate of pay, then are dismissed for the night. Feeling a bit adventurous, I slip out to the training field, drop my bag, and unroll the scroll that Kakashi gave me.

"Let's see..."

I definitely feel nervous. I wonder if I should...no. No, I'm going to do this on my own. I have to.

I can use handseals as a starter, so I make the few listed and focus my chakra at the same time. What feels like the technique activates, and I feel...pulled out of time for a moment, like everything has simply slowed to a crawl. There's a pop and surge as the tingling explodes into something else, making me lose my place for a second before the world starts moving normally again.

"Sh-shoot..." I can feel myself buzzing all over. It's hot and some of the electricity is still jumping away from my skin for a while. I don't think I electrocuted myself, though I wouldn't be surprised. Okay. That was an...interesting first experience. Next time, I will make proper preparations, and make sure that I'm well rested before attempting this technique. It's...it's something, to be sure. An incredible amount of stimulation that ended up altering my perception of the world, even if it was for the briefest of moments. No wonder the Raikage uses this technique...someone who has been described as 'faster than thought'.

Shino would say that sounded cool. I can't help but agree. It does sound fantastic and legendary.

"A new goal, then..."

I feel a smile come on. A new challenge...this is getting me quite excited.

---

The call has been put out. It's morning in the Hidden Leaf.

I sit at Training Field Three, on top of one of the logs standing upright in the middle of the grounds. There are a few figures approaching. They're well within the range of my tracking art...I press my tongue against my top lip, and get a taste of the air as if flows towards me. Midori said that the technique would grow stronger the more that I used it, and true to her word, it has. I have more control than ever, and it's very good.

"..."

The scents and feedback are sharp. Familiar, too. Naruto and Ino I recognize immediately. Sakura, with her silly scented shampoo. There are others...pork. Specifically, the smell of pork rinds.

He's always eating!

Ino said that the other day. "Choji," I mumble. The next smell is a bit faint, but I know it. Similar to the Hokage...tobacco smoke.

Oh, you noticed that. I was talking to Asuma, and he has that smoking habit of his...

I recognize this smell mainly from Kurenai. Asuma-sensei, who is the instructor for Team Ten. Ino doesn't have the same level of smoke on her, if at all. Choji doesn't either. That leaves...Shikamaru. So he spends a lot of time with Asuma, then. Interesting.

Another scent...reminds me faintly of burning wood.

The Uchiha are known for their prowess in Fire Release jutsu.

Iruka's voice echoes through my head.

"Sasuke. What the hell could he want..." I feel agitated at the very thought of him. Almost enough for me to awaken 'that' side just so I can start some proper bullying.

I still haven't gotten over that time at the Academy. That sort of despair...almost fading into oblivion. It will never leave me. It was fear on a level that I never want to experience again. And all because I trusted him. Because I tried to be a good girl. Because I let down my guard against that...trash.

"Lili! Are you really gonna fight Sakura?!"

"..." Naruto. I almost don't have the heart to answer him. I use a body flicker to leave my perch and appear in front of Sakura's face, startling her. She puts on a brave front a moment later. "Yes, Naruto. This is what she asked for, with her own mouth."

"I...I see..."

"Stay out of it, Naruto. This isn't something you would ever understand," Sakura says.

"Don't you try to speak for him," I snap back. "He's gone through enough hardship without you piling it on. Now...I know that Ino was bringing guests, but I didn't hear anything from you about spectators. What's your game?"

"I'm allowed to bring my teammates to watch, too. There wasn't any rule against it."

"You foolish little brat. Do you understand why I came on my own, and why I agreed to Ino's team coming to spectate? I didn't want to involve more people than necessary. Did you want to make this a public massacre? Did you want to be humiliated and destroyed in front of others? Because I could have easily obliged you," I say. I then take a breath in and calm down a little. "But what's done is done. We'll settle it here, as long as nobody opens their mouth about it to anyone else. This is between us, and us alone."

"..." She slowly nods.

"Oh, and one more thing...I suggest you fight for your life, Sakura. Because if you ever get the idea to sit there and sandbag so that your boyfriend can collect data on me, I'll make sure to tear your pink hair from your empty skull strand by strand."

She flinches, her eyes flickering to Sasuke for a brief moment.

"Do you hear me? Don't you dare fuck with me, or I'll really kill you," I growl.

"Ah, geez. This is why women are so troublesome," Shikamaru whines. "They'll kill each other over the smallest things."

"Shut up, Shikamaru. Alright, let's start the fight before we all drown in the bad blood," Ino says. I move a fair distance away from Sakura as Ino holds one arm in the air. "Okay, here we go! It's a no...well, some holds barred showdown! Use anything you like to take down your opponent! The boundaries are the edges of the training field, and the fight ends when one fighter is unable to continue or surrenders!"

"I'll have eyes and ears all over!" Naruto announces. "It's the greatest referee crew assembled! My Shadow Clone Jutsu is ready to go!"

"Awesome! Remember, no maiming! And especially no killing!" she says with a look towards me. I roll my eyes and nod. "Good! Fighters ready?"

"Ready!" Sakura yells drawing a kunai.

"Ready," I reply, crossing my arms.

"Begin!"

As Ino throws her arm down, Sakura charges with a body flicker. She draws a second kunai and makes seals, producing a clone on either side of her.

Regular bunshin? Here? I grit my teeth in frustration. Seems it's time to teach this air head a lesson she won't forget.

She has her clones weave in and out in a pattern, trying to fool me. I hold back a bit, adding more difficulty by not using my tracking art to find her in an instant. Okay, which one...

The first crosses in front of me, and they all simultaneously slash away. I step through the first image easily. There's one coming in from behind, and I let it run me through as a ghost, exiting my front side. And the third...accelerates towards me before passing through. Three clones? So, then...ah.

I draw a kunai and raise it into the air, clashing with Sakura as she comes down from above.

"Well, you're more clever than I assumed," I say tonelessly. Not a lie since it was a decent feint, but I'm intent on riling her up. "Congratulations."

"Grr...!"

But it's useless against me, and she should have known that much. She drops to the ground and tries to flashily attack with both kunai in her hands. I use my one hand to easily block each strike as it comes. Her taijutsu is...

...it's not special. That much is a problem. She seems like she's scared of fighting, or doesn't know how. But she's not stupid. She's studied this.

And she's slow. Her movement speed and attacking speed are worlds apart, which is why she uses movement and momentum so often in time with her attacks. This girl is strange. Has she not picked up anything since the Academy?

"Is this all you have?" I taunt.

She growls and her speed increases a bit. This is her wheelhouse, chakra control. She was always good at it, I noticed. This time she's trying to use it to get around me. Not a bad thought, but...it's useless when there's an ocean between us. I automatically parry her strikes, then start to drive her back. With a swift movement, I spike one of the kunai out of her hands, leaving her with just the one. She flinches and is helpless as I evade her strikes, cutting into her bare arms over and over.

Sakura eventually drops her remaining kunai because of the pain. I slap her across the face with the handle of mine, making her tumble to the ground.

She has to know where she is right now. I'll see if she indeed has a brain inside of that cotton candy head. "You do understand why you're on Team Seven, yes?"

Sakura pants and rises to her feet, glaring at me. Small drops of blood leak from the cuts that crisscross her arms. With no answer, I start my lecture.

"Each of the squads are constructed in a way that complements each member. Not just in terms of scoring, but in terms of ability. Naruto is, simply put, not very good at academics. Sasuke, for all his effort, is middling in that area at best."

"I told you...stop talking about Sasuke like that!"

I ignore her and continue, twirling my kunai on my fingers. "You seem to have a good amount of general intelligence. In other words...you are supposed to be the anchor of the team on that front. Using your academic and observational skills, you would pass your wisdom onto the other members of your team. In return, you would learn how to improve your combat skills from watching Naruto and Sasuke, as they are both more adept on that front than you are. The skills of each teammate are meant to help the others grow. That is why you were arranged that way."

"That's some analysis...go, Lili," Ino says.

"What's that have to do with anything, or any of this?" Sakura snaps back at me.

"I'll spell it out for you, bimbo. What have you learned from watching Naruto and Sasuke? And what have you taught them since you've come together as a team?"

"I...I haven't..."

"What have you accomplished in this time? What have you done other than become so rounded that you're not good at anything other than balancing your chakra to a fine point? While you sit and play housekeeper, Naruto and Sasuke push themselves on your behalf."

"That's not true!" she protests. "You don't know anything about us!"

I grip my kunai properly again, narrowing my eyes at her. "Then prove it. Go ahead and crush me like you promised."

"You...!" She rushes forward and makes more handseals before picking up the kunai she dropped earlier, engaging me. I quickly stab forward before she can react, and she reels.

"...hmph. Right."

Sakura transforms into a log. I can hear her diving into the trees nearby...certainly, if there's a place for a book loving nerd like her, it's the forest. All sorts of nasty traps and other things will be at her disposal. Hopefully she doesn't bore me like she has this entire time.

"They're taking the battle to the tress," Ino announces. Her entourage follows, some more reluctantly than others. "Sakura's holding on after a really rough start! Can she make headway with all this room to hide and plan? Or is Lili too much of a monster to be contained? Let's find out!"

Nothing I can't handle from the likes of her. I walk into the trees and can't immediately make out her presence, so...

"Mm?" I hear a snapping sound. A log rushes towards me...it's laid out horizontally, so that means I should-

But there's another sound and I look down to see that my foot is on top of an exploding tag. And now there's a log swinging in from my left vertically. And as I quickly glance over to my right...

"Why don't you just shut your damn mouth!"

Sakura throws a wave of senbon at me. If those land, they're going to hurt no matter what. Two logs closing in, exploding tags at my feet. Staying in this position means I can avoid the logs, but the lit tags will blow me up. Dodging away means either confronting a log or becoming a living pin cushion. Possibly both.

Only a small margin of error allowed...this is a well constructed trap.

"..."

It's too bad she obviously snuck in and prepared this beforehand, but there's nothing wrong with that in the end...rules are rules, and there was no rule against this. Clever when she wants to be. A shinobi, at least in spirit.

Oh, but I'm still going to make her cry bloody tears.

I wanted to hold back a bit more, but this is getting serious now, what with her trying to blow me up. Ino said no maiming, right? I'll let it go since the pink brat is obviously desperate and panicking.

Right. Sort of in danger, still. The logs are in close, and the exploding tags have started burning. I stomp the ground with one foot, pushing chakra into it. Ready.

I accelerate, jumping onto the log coming for me from the front and laid out horizontally. The other log swings by behind me as I jump, sticking the landing and running up the log to my right. As it swings upwards, I use the momentum to launch myself into the air, doing a quick twirl and spin as I remove the exploding tags from the bottom of my foot. I wrap them around a kunai and throw in a single motion as my spin brings me back in line with Sakura. She barely dodges in time as the tag goes off, destroying the base of the tree she was hiding behind.

It creaks loudly before starting to fall, and this is my chance - it's falling towards me, like it was all planned out. I keep my momentum going while in the air and flip a few times while the trunk comes underneath me, then stop and drop onto it. It's still falling; I accelerate down the surface with my foot speed and locate Sakura, jumping off early towards her as she stands away from the path of the falling tree. She raises her arms to guard, and I pass through her like a ghost.

"Clone...?" she mumbles. I've already hit the ground, and I shift forward.

My turn.

A punch to her unguarded midsection before she can react as the tree crashes down behind us. She gasps for air and drops her arms; I follow with a three punch combination to the head, making her stumble around like she's drunk as wings beat above us. Next move. A solid left cross that sends spittle flying from her mouth as her head snaps to one side. Next move. An open palm thrust that makes her cry out as she's sent back first into a nearby tree, sending more birds away with the tremors. Leaves fall slowly to the ground as she bounces forward; I plant my feet and turn viciously into a roundhouse kick, slamming her into the tree again and ripping the bark apart.

She starts to land before I move forward and knee her into the air, making her gasp loudly, then accelerate into an elbow strike to the stomach that sends her flying out of the forest, back into the open field. I follow her slowly, watching as she struggles to get to her feet.

"Sakura...listen, you don't have to..." Ino looks concerned.

"That was a nice try with the traps," I say flatly. "But they're useless against someone like me. I didn't have to use ninjutsu to escape that time, so I think you should work on it some more."

"Don't...don't get arrogant," she says, coughing and wheezing.

"You should worry about yourself, sweetheart. Are we done, or do you want me to grind you into the dirt some more?"

"I'm...not giving up! Just bring it!"

I shake my head as she charges, missing a punch. My hand goes around her throat and she struggles to force it off. She's done. I might as well end this mercifully.

"I told you. Know. Your. Place. You are not a warrior yet, don't play as if you are one. Know what you mean to your team!" I yell. "Know your function! Learn about yourself and decide who you want to become! Do you understand, or do I have to beat it into you?"

"Don't..."

"Don't what? Lecture you? Tell you what to do? Open your damn eyes..." I raise my fist, intending to knock her out and end this farce. It's gone on long enough.

"Stop, villain!"

"...!" I throw Sakura to one side and lean all the way backwards as someone passes right over me. A burst of wind rushes by shortly after, and I quickly pull myself upwards before getting into a battle stance.

That was dangerous. I could only feel danger from that last move. Fast, powerful...no release of chakra, either. I stare down the idiot in front of me. Black hair in some sort of bowl cut, a green spandex suit with his headband around his waist, and yellow leg warmers. Bandage is wrapped tightly around his arms, and I can smell a bit of blood.

"Sakura! Are you okay?" he asks with concern.

"..." And his eyebrows are terribly thick.

"What are you doing? Sakura is by no means weak, but it's clear that she's not on the same level as you! If you would like a fair fight, then I will be your opponent!" He makes a sort of...pose. "I am the Leaf's Handsome Blue Beast, Rock Lee!"

"Rock Lee," I mumble. The child with only taijutsu in his arsenal, spoken of from time to time at the Academy. "So you're him. Well...you should know that Sakura was the one who challenged me to this fight. She insisted on it, in fact. Ask Ino."

"That does not matter!"

"Oh, but it certainly does, Rock Lee. Anyone arrogant enough to challenge someone out of their league deserves what she gets. And this was doubling as a teaching moment," I explain. "Sakura needs to pay attention to the strengths of her teammates and learn from them. White knights like you will only stifle her growth."

"This is still unacceptable! All you were doing was bombarding her with your own frustrations! This is not a fight, it's humiliation!"

"I had the decency to do this in private!" I scream. "I did all I could to give her what she wanted, and still protect her at the same time! None of you did the same at the Academy, you shunned and shamed me in full view of everyone else!" I take a breath in and slowly wind down. "Take your arrogance and shove it back down your throat. You don't get to tell me what humiliation is. You've walked into something that you have no understanding of." I take another breath in. "And I assume that you're not going to leave as long as I want to continue this fight."

"That is correct."

"You're a fucking piece of work," I growl. "Then that's it. I'm done. If it soothes Sakura's ego, call it a concession on my end. I couldn't care any less. I am not going to fight two on one, especially with someone who outclasses me to that degree in taijutsu. I would have to resort to decidedly unpleasant methods...and none of you want to see me when I'm feeling unpleasant."

"..." Lee slowly drops his stance and stares at me with curiosity.

"I'm going home. Enjoy the rest of your day."

"Running away?"

I feel my blood freeze as another voice calls to me. "What...?"

"I asked...if you were running away, Kobayashi."

I twitch. My head turns towards Sasuke, and I can see his Sharingan are on. I'm shaking. I'm shaking from anger, and I can't stop. "You...fucking trash. You fucking trash. Don't push me..."

"Why don't you-"

"Sasuke! Stop it!" Naruto puts his arm in front of his teammate.

"Stay out of this, idiot!"

"I said to stop! Leave her alone!"

"You should really listen to Naruto, Sasuke." The shaking stops, and I calm down slowly. Kakashi steps between us. "Don't get carried away. Even if you're recorded a few things with those eyes, you're still not on her level yet. And you know it."

"..." He has his bloodline limit shut off.

"You've used that brain of yours for once." He turns to me. "Feeling okay?"

"Yes...I should be okay. It was just...a bit stressful now."

"I'll handle the rest of this. You should go home and rest, Lili."

"Yes. Thank you, Kakashi."

"Yeah. I couldn't be completely irresponsible, after all."

"I appreciate that. Until the next time," I say quietly.

I walk away from the training field, for good this time.

 

[LENDAR-NOT]

I've never hated the rookie members of the rookie 12 this much

 

[Pai]

Bodys are a good teaching tool. SHould have made some.

 

[Khona Moshr]

I've never hated the rookie members of the rookie 12 this much

Click to shrink...

Well let's be honest early Naruto characters are pretty assholish until Naruto get character development and then punches development into the others.

And Rock Lee did have a point that Lili was going too far.

While Lili is justifiably angry that no one helped her.

So hopefully we have either reached rock bottom or are about to and then we can have Naruto punching everyone into being a better person even Lili.