AN: I'm baaaaaaaaack I know you guys missed me sooooo much (jk it's been like 10 minutes since I published the last chapter to when I started writing this one, goodness I need to get a life ;-; ).
Here's the next installment in His Little Bird, I hope y'all like it!
This is a photo of Ukon. I know, he's in modern clothes (just ignore that bit), but this is as close as I could get to what I pictured him to look like in my head without having to harm your poor eyes with a terrible drawing done by yours truly.
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"Everyone ready?" Eri Sensei's voice came in quiet over the radio. Sen nearly nodded, but then remembered that none of her teammates could see her.
"Sen in position."
"Ukon in position."
"...."
Eri Sensei sighed, "Hiroe, you need to vocalize to us when you're in position, you can't just stay silent the whole time.
"Tch."
"I'll take that as an 'I'm ready, Sensei.'"
"Tch."
Sen rolled her eyes and sighed heavily, it was so hard to work with someone who never talked. Especially when the only way to communicate was via talking. "Everyone ready?"
"On my count," Eri Sensei took over, "Three...two...one...go!" The three young ninja streaked into action, with their Sensei following a little bit more slowly behind, wanting them to get the action. Sen held a rope in her hands as she flew through the air. The three landed on the back of a massive beast...a bull. The bull's eyes turned red and smoke streamed from its nostrils as it let out a loud moo, pawing at the ground and snorting. The two boys grabbed onto its horns, trying to get it to stay still, their feet digging into the soft earth, as Sen tied the rope around its neck.
"Capture successful." Sen said, not bothering to use her transmitter this time, "Now to just bring this behemoth back home." This time, Eri Sensei did step in to help, taking one of the sides of the bull to make sure it didn't try and run off. Sen sat atop the beast, with Ukon leading it and Hiroe on the side opposite to their teacher. "This guy has been a real pain in the neck today." Sen muttered as she sat back and relaxed for the ride home.
"Remind me again why you get to do all the sitting and we have to do all the walking?" Ukon whined at her.
"Because, Ukon, I'm the one with the massive birds that can stop the brute if need be. I'm also cuter, so I get the easier job today." That last one was just to dig at the boy's nerves, and Eri Sensei had to stifle a chuckle. The three...well...mostly just the two of them, since one didn't talk, were always at each other's throats. It was like watching siblings bicker.
Eventually, the bull began to act up again and Sen had to hop down to help the other three. The nasty attitude this lumbering beast had made for a difficult time getting him back into his pen. When Sen had finally slammed the gate shut, she wiped the sweat off her brow. "I swear, that should be counted as a C-Rank Mission, the little bastard."
"I'd have to agree with you on that one, Sen." Eri Sensei said, shooting daggers at the nasty beast, who snorted at her and pawed the ground, causing the woman to flail as she turned around, whistling as though she didn't even notice the creature.
"You really should...think before you go provoking creatures like that, Sensei." A quiet voice said. It was Hiroe. Eri's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. If there was one thing that boy spoke up for, it was chances to scold his Sensei. Her hand clenched into a fist as she suppressed the urge to clock him in the jaw for having such a smart mouth when he did opt to speak up. If only that wouldn't be frowned upon...maybe she'll have to get a punch or two in on him later under the facade that it was a training exercise.
"Hn. Let's just go meet with the Hokage." Eri turned on a heel and strode away from the farm, leaping up into the trees and racing towards the Hokage's Tower for what felt like the millionth time that week. The Hokage had been his usual slave-driving self, sending Team Eleven on an insane number of missions, and Ukon took it upon himself to complain about each and every one, and how they did nothing to enhance his skills as a ninja. Her Genin were fast on her heels, so she increased the speed, wanting to get in there and hopefully be done for the day.
"Do you think this will be the last one of the day? We've done like...four so far. I just want to go home." Sen asked her Sensei as she pushed harder off the trees to catch up. That was one thing the young kunoichi was good at, Eri Sensei mused, her speed. The girl was quicker than either of the other two, and could be considered nearly as fast as Eri herself, and Eri wasn't exactly slow.
"I hope so, Sen. I could use a good shower right about now. I'm pretty sure I smell like a barn." Her Sensei responded, nose screwing up at the thought of the odor of sweat and farm that must be radiating off her - and the other three Genin - right about now. It was a hot day, and that just made things worse. They burst out of the trees and hit the ground running, slowing to trot up the stairs of the tower and over to the Hokage's office. Eri raised her hand and knocked on the large oak door that stood between her and getting the rest of the night off.
"Enter."
Eri pushed the door open and led the three young Ninja into the room, stopping in front of the Hokage and bowing her head slightly, all three Genin following her lead. "Lord Hokage."
"Has Team Eleven completed their latest mission, Eri?"
"Hai, Hokage-sama."
"Well done...you may be done for today." The Hokage said, puffing on his pipe that seemed to be always between the old man's lips.
"Hokage-sama!" Ukon started and Eri stifled a groan, this wasn't going to be good.
"What is it, Sonoda Ukon?" The Hokage asked, even though it was clear he knew what was coming.
"I feel like we're not getting missions that reflect our skill level - why can't we get something more difficult? We have some of the better talent from our class!"
"Ukon..." Eri Sensei sighed, rubbing the back of her neck, "Please forgive him, Hokage-sama. He doesn't really understand the point of working his way up to higher level missions yet."
"I'll think about it." Was all the Hokage said, and Eri's eyes nearly bugged out of her head.
"W-what?!"
"Well, I have already sent Team Kakashi on a C-Rank mission, and if these three are as talented as Ukon says, perhaps I will find something for these three to take on as well." The Hokage stated, leaning back and stroking his beard.
"What?! You sent Billboard Brow, the kid with the duckbutt for hair and Naruto on a C-Rank but not us?!" Ukon exploded, a massive irk mark appearing on his forehead.
Sen growled and pulled her arm back, smacking him upside the head with all her strength.
"Ukon! Knock it off!" She snapped, "I'm trying to go home not get tied up in another mission today!"
"It's okay, Sen. You will have the rest of the night off. I'll consider assigning you to a C-Rank mission, and you will all report back here to me at nine tomorrow morning. You are dismissed."
Sen let out a sigh of relief, running a hand through her now falling apart braid and bowed to the Hokage, "Arigatou gozaimasu, Hokage-sama." The other three bowed as she turned on her heel and exited out the door, but she paused in the hallway to wait for her Sensei.
Eri noticed the girl had paused, and had turned to look back at her. Studying the girl, and wondering what she could want after she had seemed so eager to go home, even going so far as to smack her teammate upside the head in front of the Hokage, which is something that seemed almost uncharacteristic for the girl. She had a bad temper, for sure, but she seemed to always remain under control in front of figures of authority - aside from Eri Sensei herself, that is. "What is it you need, Sen?" Eri Sensei asked as she caught up with the girl, who turned to walk beside her as soon as she had.
"There's something I wanted to ask you." Sen said quietly, as if she was almost afraid to ask it.
"Well, that's quaint. I wanted to ask you something as well." Sen's eyebrow arched at her Sensei's statement, and it was obvious she wasn't expecting that answer from her teacher. "I've noticed, Sen, you've started carrying around that katana...but you have yet to use it. Not in training or anything. Why?"
"Well...that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about." Sen murmured again, and this time it was Eri's turn to arch her eyebrow - how ironic that they both wanted to talk to the other about the same thing. "I was wondering...if you would teach me to use it. I know that you use a katana when you fight, and I'd really like to learn."
"Why?"
"Wha-why what?" Sen asked, her brow furrowing. Why did Eri Sensei care so much about why she wanted to learn to use a katana?
"Why do you want me to teach you to use that weapon?" Eri Sensei asked, the look on her face saying 'isn't it obvious?'
"Well...my sister, Katsumi, gave the weapon to me. She used katanas when she fought, and I'd like to do the same. She was strong, and I know that I need to become strong to protect this village and make her proud...and to do right by her memory. I know it sounds silly but...it's also almost like a way I can become closer to her, even though she's gone." Sen said quietly, looking away and biting her lip. Admitting all of this sent a surge of emotion through her, and it honestly made it a little difficult not to cry, but she had no intention of crying in front of her Sensei. She didn't want to appear weak to a woman who was so obviously very strong.
"So, you want to be like your big sister?" Eri Sensei asked, crossing her arms, "Normally, I'd say that that isn't enough for me to teach someone a weapon, or Jutsu, but...I knew your big sister. I knew what she was like, and I know that the goals you just listed would make her proud. And I know that she was a kind person, who was a great Shinobi with great strength. So I will teach you, to honor her memory."
Suddenly, it was like Sen had returned to the way she had been before finding out about her sister's death. A smile lit up the girl's face and she clapped happily, "Really? Thank you Sensei. When can we start?"
Eri Sensei chuckled, "Well, how about we start tomorrow, whether or not we get a mission? We can always train on the road if necessary."
As soon as that glimpse of the old Sen had come it was gone again and she regained her composure, nodding, "Thank you, Sensei. It means a lot to me. Shall we begin after we find out if we have a mission or not, or shall we start before we have to meet with the Hokage?"
"Is after alright with you? I have a few things I need to take care of in the morning."
"It's your time I'm taking up. After is just fine." Sen nodded her head in deference, and turned to walk away. She looked over her shoulder as she walked away and spoke one last time, "Thank you again, Sensei."
Eri nodded as she watched the girl walk away from her, mulling over the interaction they just had, and her sudden outburst of enthusiasm. What an odd girl... she mused, smiling softly. She would teach Sen to use the katana if that's what she really wished, but it would be difficult. Someone as small as her would struggle quite a bit initially with the katana, especially considering it was still too large for her. If she was just an inch taller, it would be perfect.
An inch taller...she would be the same height as Katsumi then. Eri said, thinking back to the days when Katsumi was younger than even Sen was now, and how Katsumi would constantly follow the older Eri around, begging for her to be her friend. How she had scorned the girl at first for being younger than her, but soon, the two became fast friends, despite the age difference. Is it possible...this sword was made for Katsumi?
"Hey! Sen!" Eri shouted across the courtyard, and the girl turned around once more, "I have one more question...when did Katsumi give you this blade?"
"My mother said she left it for me right before she left for her last mission, as a graduation present. My mom said Katsumi told her there was no way I wouldn't pass, so there was no reason to keep this hidden and give it to me after she returned from the mission. Why?"
A look of shock, and possibly even understanding ran across the woman's face, "N-no, it's nothing. I was just curious." Eri plastered on a smile and waved at the girl, turning to walk over to a bench and sit down, her thoughts racing. So...Katsumi had that blade made for herself. It was no coincidence that the blade would fit Katsumi perfectly. Did...did she know that she was going to die when she gave that sword to Sen? What exactly was the mission she was assigned? What happened?
The Next Morning
Sen rolled out of bed and yawned widely, checking the time. Seven. That means I have a bit of time to train before I see the Hokage this morning. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she pulled on her clothes, strapped her weapons to her body and opened the window for her raptors to head out ahead of her. "Today, we'll go to the grassy area across the way, I think."
"What will we be working on?"
"I think I'll start with some meditation first...then I'd like to work on Eagle Eye."
"But Milady...if you get a headache..."
"No...something feels good about it today. I think if I just focus before I try it, I can finally figure it out. It helps that you already know it, Go. You've sped up the rate of the training Akai and I have been doing by quite a bit. I have a lot to thank you for." Sen smiled and ruffled the bird's feathers and he glared good-naturedly at her before heading out the window, Akaihane hot on his heels.
Sen walked downstairs, nodding a greeting to her father and mother, when her younger sister, Akane, grabbed at her skirt. "Nee-chan! Nee-chan! Will you train with me today?" The younger girl tugged at her skirt, nearly pulling it down, and Sen smiled, her eyes closed. She knelt down on one knee and ruffled the young girl's hair.
"I'm sorry, Akane, I can't train with you today. I have to go meet with my team so we can receive a mission from Lord Hokage. Perhaps you can ask Miko to train with you? I believe he's home from his last mission."
Akane's shoulders drooped and she turned away, visibly upset, "Now that you graduated you never have time to train with me anymore."
Sen felt a little bad for her little sister, she was proud of the determination the young girl was showing, and she wanted to help her as much as she could, she just didn't have the time. "I really am sorry, Akane. I promise, as soon as I get back from this mission, I'll train with you some, okay? Maybe I'll work with you and Miné on the Great Hawk Jutsu?" Her little sister perked up at that, and nodded happily, taking that as a good enough answer. Sen rose and grabbed an apple, "Well then, I'm off to meet with my team. I'll see you all later. I'm sure I'll be back to grab things before we go if I have a mission today."
"Why would you need to grab things? Will you be gone long?" Her mother asked, a worried look passing across her face.
"The Hokage said he would consider giving us a C-Rank because we've been doing so well at our D-Rank missions, and we've done so many of them already. So I may be gone for a few days. I don't know yet." Sen responded simply, her voice nonchalant.
"Sen...you be careful." Is all her mother said, her father on the other hand, seemed quite pleased with the news.
"That's my girl, you go out there and do your best!" He raised his fist in the air and stuck his thumb up, grinning widely.
"I will mother, father. Arigatou!" With that, she finally headed out the door and across the way to the park that stood just outside her clan's compound. The day was bright and clear, a perfect day to get some training in. Settling down on the hill, she crossed her legs and brought her hands together both facing palm up, the left on top of the right. She closed her eyes, cleared her mind, and just sat still. She wasn't sure how much time had passed, her raptors sitting silently on a bench behind her, but she was startled out of her reverie by someone cautiously moving to sit down not too far away from her. It was clear they were trying not to disturb the meditating kunoichi, but unfortunately their plan backfired. Peeking one eye open, she looked in the direction of the noise and let out a heavy sigh. I don't even know why I'm surprised that he's the one who's here. He always comes out here.
Shikamaru noticed that Sen had moved, and was now looking at him. His cheeks flushed pink and he rubbed the back of his neck, "Sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you."
"It's okay. It's better that you did, I wouldn't want to end up being here too long and missing my team meeting." Sen said simply, laying back with her hands behind her head. "Speaking of which, do you know what time it is?"
"It's eight."
"Fabulous, I still have an hour then. Do you mind if I do some training here, it's not loud." Sen said with a small smile, looking over at Shikamaru. This was the first time she'd seen him out here in weeks, they were both so busy, so she didn't really want to take up his time to relax.
"If it's not going to be loud I guess it won't be too troublesome." He sighed, laying back into the grass, "But it'd be a real drag if I ended up having to be a training dummy..."
Sen snorted, "As if I'd use you as a training dummy. You wouldn't provide a challenge at all! You'd just sit there!" An irk mark appeared on Shikamaru's head and he was suddenly regretting saying it was okay if Sen practiced her Jutsu here. Sen simply turned away without saying anything else, and nodded to Akaihane, "Let's try it out." Shikamaru watched with slight interest as Akaihane nodded back at her and took off. The other bird, the eagle, almost looked like he was communicating with Sen silently, and if he could then Shikamaru wouldn't be all that surprised, considering she could understand the shrieks and caws that they made at her. It was a lot like Kiba's abilities now that he thought about it, but there were a lot of extra advantages to controlling birds. Sen quickly formed some signs with her hands, closing her eyes and letting out a deep breath, "Surudoi me no Jutsu!" she cried out, and her eyes flashed open. Instead of their natural blue, they were suddenly golden, and seemed much more...stern.
Sen turned her head and stared around the clearing for a moment, a massive smile on her face, and Shikamaru just stared at her, confused. What the hell is she looking at? What jutsu was that? The pistons in his brain firing, he analyzed what happened. Well...the Jutsu is called the Eagle Eye Jutsu, and her eyes changed color...perhaps it is an ocular jutsu of sorts, that increases the range of your sight, almost like the Byakugan, but without the ability to read chakra. That would be a useful Jutsu indeed, no wonder she seems so happy to have it-
His thoughts were cut off as Sen cried out, clutching at her head and dropping to her knees. She curled up into a ball, her shoulders heaving as she breathed heavily, her fingers digging into her forehead as if she was in a massive amount of pain. "Damn it!" She swore, one hand leaving her face to slam into the ground, balled up into a fist. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!" She gritted her teeth against the pain, willing to to subside. She'd been so close for Christ's sake!
"H-hey, Sen-chan, are you okay?" Shikamaru stuttered, inching closer to her, "Do you need to go to the hospital?"
"N-no," She stuttered, her teeth still clenched from the pain, "I just need something to make this damn headache go away. It always happens when I do this Jutsu and I don't know why. It's gotten better though. The last time I tried it without Gorudo's help, I passed out on a bench in the pouring rain." She smiled grimly at him, knowing he would remember.
"Can you walk?" Shikamaru asked, rising to his feet.
"With help, probably. This pain usually makes it impossible for me to move by myself."
"Then come with me. I've got something to make that headache go away." Shikamaru outstretched his hand and Sen took it, her own hand trembling a little bit from fighting away waves of pain and nausea. He pulled her up and she stumbled, but he recovered quickly and caught her with a little oof. "Easy there, Sen. Take it slow if you need to."
"I know, I know." She snipped at Shikamaru. She knew she shouldn't be rude to him since he was offering to help, but she hated needing help, or asking for it. Leaning against Shikamaru, they slowly made their way towards his clan compound, which was thankfully right next to hers, so it was only a couple minutes walk, extended simply because of their slow pace.
"You know, to speed things up, I could just carry you." Shikamaru offered, "It would be a drag...but I don't think it would be any less of a drag than this."
"No! It definitely would be more of a drag." Sen snapped as she gripped Shikamaru's arm more tightly, as if trying to prevent him from picking her up. "I don't need to be carried. I don't even need help walking, it just makes it easier." Her pride stung at the implication that she couldn't walk, or that it was taking up too much of his precious time to bother helping her, "If I'm encroaching too much on your precious cloud-watching time, why don't you just leave me be and go back to that hill of yours?"
"Hey, relax, jeez. Troublesome girl." Shikamaru muttered, a sweat drop forming on his forehead. She's almost as bad as mom is... he thought to himself grimly, not really all that excited to have the two of them in one room together, and conscious. Finally, they reached the doors of the main home, and Shikamaru slid it open, helping the still nauseous Sen inside the house and sitting her down on one of the chairs in the kitchen.
"Mom! Dad! Are either one of you home?" Shikamaru called, cupping his hands over his mouth. "I need your guys' help with something!"
Suddenly, Shikaku's head popped out from around a door frame, "What is it, Shikamaru?"
"Well, one of my classmates has a really bad headache from practicing one of her Jutsu - it's an ocular one that increases the distance of your field of vision, so you have around the same eyesight as an eagle or a hawk. At least that's what I think it is based on what I saw. But whenever she uses it, she gets really bad headaches, and I figured I'd bring her here to see if you had anything for the headache."
Shikaku nodded and motioned for his son to check on the girl again, to make sure she really was okay. "I'll be right back, I know what she needs." He turned and walked away into a back store room, where you could hear some crashing and banging around. Shikamaru flinched, hoping it wouldn't aggravate the girl's headache any further. Sen, on the other hand, let out a low whimper as she massaged her temples in a desperate attempt to stave off the pain. Shikaku suddenly rounded the corner again, a cup of tea and a bottle of what looked like oil in his hands.
"Here, this is a tea with elder flower, vervain and skullcap, it should relieve most of the tension portion of the headache, if not all of the pain." Shikaku said to the girl gently, who took the cup with a shaking hand and took a small sip. She then eyed the bottle of oil, and Shikaku continued speaking, "This is goldenrod, the oil can relieve muscular pain on the neck and head area." He handed it to his son, "You know where to apply it. I have to meet up with Inoichi in just a few minutes, so I can't hang around." Shikamaru opened his mouth to protest, but his father raised his hand to stop him from speaking, "I hope you feel better, Sen. If you ever want some bags of that tea, just let Shikamaru know and I'll send him to bring you some." Sen just nodded again and mouthed a silent 'thank you' before continuing to sip at the tea. Shikaku tossed the bottle of oil to his son and put his hand up in farewell.
Shikamaru put his face in his hand for a moment, muttering about how troublesome this had all turned out to be. He was now definitely regretting bringing her here. It was just like his father to make him do this to see if he liked the girl or not. Why did his dad care so much? All he wanted was an average woman, not too ugly but not too pretty either. Sen blew that completely out of the water, no way he could ever like her. Not to mention the fact that she was probably the most troublesome person he'd ever met, she was even up there with Ino. Why do I keep on helping this girl? He grumbled to himself, slowly unscrewing the cap to the oil.
"You don't have to." Sen murmured, her fist still clenched against the table.
Shikamaru froze for a moment, not expecting her to speak, "W-what?"
"You don't have to do that. I know you don't want to." Sen said again, elaborating a bit more on what she meant.
"N-no. It's fine. What kind of comrade would I be if I wasn't willing to help someone who needed it?" Shikamaru muttered. He placed the cap on the table and tapped some of the oil out onto his fingertips, a small flush spreading across his cheeks. As soon as his fingers made contact with Sen's neck, she flinched and her cheeks turned bright red as well.
"S-sorry. I'm just...really ticklish." She muttered sheepishly, her hand reaching back to pull her hair out of the way so it wouldn't get covered in the sweet smelling oil. Shikamaru quickly finished rubbing it into her neck, and she could already feel some of the tension melting away, when he switched to her temples, quickly finishing the job. His face was beet red the entire time, and Sen's was colored the same shade. When Shikamaru was done, he screwed the cap back onto the oil and handed the bottle to the girl, "Here. Take this, you may need it if you continue to work on that Jutsu."
Sen palmed the bottle and nodded, "Thanks, Shikamaru-kun." Rising shakily, she moved towards the door and opened it, "I guess I owe you one now, so if you ever need anything from our birds for an antidote, let me know. I know hawk feathers can be pretty useful."
"Actually, I know my father was looking for some gyrfaclon feathers..." Shikamaru started hesitantly, not sure why the girl would offer something like this.
"My mother's companion is a gyrfalcon. I'll collect some and bring them to you." Sen said simply, then walked out the door, her hawk and eagle alighting on her shoulders as soon as she stepped outside, "Thanks again, Shikamaru-kun. I appreciate it." She offered him a small, close-eyed smile and then shut the door behind her, walking away.
I only have a little bit to get to the Hokage's tower, and I'm all the way across town. She groaned internally. "Akaihane. Mind giving me a ride?" She chirped at the hawk, who nodded and hopped down to the ground from her shoulder. Gorudo simply took off in the direction of the Hokage's Tower, knowing he could just meet them there. "Sora no dai kemono: Kyojin Taka no Jutsu!" A white cloud of smoke appeared, and once again, Akaihane was in his much larger form. Hopping on his back, Sen directed him towards the Hokage Tower and Akai took off, moving swiftly through the clouds before landing next to Gorudo in a large tree by the tower. Sen hopped off his back and let the hawk return to his smaller size before jumping down from the tree to land in front of her teammates.
"Sorry I'm a little late, got caught up dealing with something at home." Sen lied smoothly, not wanting them to know that she'd been out of commission because of a stupid mistake on her part. She'd pushed that Jutsu too far, once she'd held it for five seconds, she should have just released it like Gorudo suggested. Of course she couldn't just listen to the bird who knew what he was doing. She had to push it and then she ended up in that insanely awkward situation with Shikamaru and his father. The goldenrod oil in her kunai pouch suddenly felt much heavier, as if reminding her of her embarrassment earlier this morning. She breezed past her teammates and Sensei, heading up the stairs to enter the tower.
After everyone had assembled in the Hokage's office, the old man cleared his throat. "I have made a decision regarding Ukon's request."
"And? And?" Ukon interrupted, barely able to contain his excitement.
"You will be sent on a C-Rank mission this afternoon."
"YAHOO!" Ukon cried out, jumping into the air and pumping his fist in excitement.
The Hokage just looked mildly amused, and perhaps a little annoyed, "Now...if you'll allow me to continue, I'll brief you on the details of the mission."
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AN: Sorry to end there, this chapter was already 20 pages long and...my fingers hurt. I also wanna apologize for these chapters taking so long to write, but I write during the opening song and closing song in Naruto episodes, or during recaps that I don't care about, lmao. That's why the going is so slow.
I'll have the next chapter up soon!
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