Five days had passed since I tagged along with Sakura and Ino to a trip on the hospital to visit Sasuke and Lee.
They told me about the matches in the third phase of their chunin exam, for thinking that I might do a school article about it.
Ino and Sakura tied on their match that they also get in argue about that actually that they ended up asking me if who is the best among them. how should I know. (─.─)
A slick move for Ino had to put a chackra strings after cutting her hair to corner Sakura with that trap and use a mind transfer jutsu─a jutsu of which the Yamanaka clan passed down to the members. Sakura caught by that trap and Ino successfully executed her jutsu. Mind transfer jutsu isn't a fighting technique, but to enable the user to control the body of the other person. But then Sakura regained consciousness, because he heard Naruto's voice.
In my opinion, Ino almost won. She have thought of her strategy very well using her jutsu that can only be used in teams. If she missed with her mind transfer jutsu, Sakura will have the upper hand.
And it's a bit unfair. She sacrificed a lot, including her hair, but gained nothing but draw.
Naruto won his match by farting on his opponent, and I can tell you that it was disgusting.
TenTen lost her match against the blond girl from the sand village.
Neji won his match against his cousin that I forgot the name.
And Lee lost his match against Gaara, who almost got killed.
I picked up the paper where I tried to make that information I gained on the chunin exam from Ino and Sakura and read it.
This is the fifth paper, but I still don't find it satisfying. I crumpled it and throw it back on my bag.
That will be the last time I'll work for it with that topic. It already came to my mind that people will only ask me how I got it. I didn't even witnessed any of the matches on the third phase of the chunin exam it myself.
It's the last day of submission tomorrow and I still haven't figured out what was the missing piece.
I'm not desperate to have my work will get included to the school's newspaper. It'll be a huge honor to get my work included, but I just wanted to do push myself until I can say that I already did my best shot. That's why I'm trying write everything that comes to mind.
I looked out on the window and watched other students playing on the campus's playground to refresh my mind.
Tomorrow was the last day of submission of papers for the school's article and today was the twenty third day of July.
[A/N: July one was the start of the first phase of the chunin exam. July two was the second phase and July six was the third phase. plus the twelve days passed, the day my OC tagged along with Sakura and Ino. and five days passed, the day of this day, twenty third day of July. Yeah, right XD]
Why do I get the feeling that there's something important in this day?
But no matter how much I dig into my mind, I can't seem to get a clue to remember it.
I made a shadow clone then told her to not let anyone know that I'm not around and she should do my part.
Yup, that's what I did five days ago, that's why I'm able to go from place to place then ended up tagging with Sakura and Ino.
I went on my way around the village, asking questions here and there to those who had time and interested to answer my random questions that I got tired and ended up buying myself a snacks and for me to realize that I walked too far and went closer the entrance gate of the village.
I let out a sigh. It was again another day of wasted time.
Maybe I already did my best shot on writing the school's article and I just don't noticed it.
I am already convincing myself that I did my best, but I noticed a familiar red hair just passed by.
Time skipped a second just to get informed by my brain that it must be the girl I wanted to interview back on the entrance of the forest of death.
I immediately went to go in search for to where I think she went.
It was a bit hard to find her because of the crowd, but I did find her in the end that I don't know which word to exactly express how happy I was when I finally got a hold of her wrist.
I held her wrist that she immediately turned to my direction. Her ruby colored eyes gave off a hint that she's scared. I must have scare her because grabbing her wrist and it was a crowded place to where we are.
"Sister, do you still remember me?" I asked that she only stared at me that she didn't even make a blink that it made me think she's anxious. "It's me, Miki. You've met me back before you take your exam on the forest of death," I said, smiling at her to reassure her that I am not going to do anything that could hurt her.
"Y...yeah. I do remember you," she replies and a bit hesitant to answer me.
"I wanted to talk to you, can you spare me sometime?" I asked hopefully.
"I'd love to, but you see," she nervously stated as she was looking around as if someone was watching us.
Oh, maybe her rude teammates again.
But I'll make sure this time I can talk to her alone and no one will stop me.(・'ω´・)
"I bought dangos," I said, showing her the box I was carrying on my other hand. "Let's go to a tea house," I said, pulling her out of the crowd. She didn't tried to pull away, which made me to think that she also wanted to talk to me, but she just can't.
I don't want to assume, and I also done want to flatter myself for thinking that what I've concluded was accurate.
"Where do you think you're going?" Someone talks in a stern and bossy tone.
She stopped walking when she heard it, so I did to.
"What's wrong?" I asked and she was looking at the person who's behind us.
I can't be so sure, but I think he was this girl's sensei, judging from how demanding he is on his aura and they also had the same headbands.
But still, if you're assigned as a leader of a squad, was you supposed to be like this?
Just looking at him, I can just tell that he doesn't like her. It's not just dislike, more like hate.
But why though?
"Do you think you can afford to have time to play?" He asked.
Her head bowed low, she bit her lip to stop it from shaking, "no," she answered plainly.
I held her wrist tighter for getting the feeling that it's a sign that she must be on her way now.
"But it was only a couple of minutes, sir," I said, trying to talk about it. "Besides, I didn't asked to play with her. I just want to talk to her," I added.
His sharp stares turned in my direction and looked at me in the eyes, "Her duty has already done here and going to waste our time for your petty little games─"
"I said, I just want to talk."
And all I knew the next second was he's on the ground.
"What happened?" And "what happened here?" Was all the chants can be heard from the peopld who were present around and witnessed it.
As for me who's someone staring back at him, didn't get to see how in hell he was on the ground.
If we try to think about it, atleast it would took three seconds for a standing person before it touches the ground if they decided to fall.
As for this person, he doesn't looks like he's acting and just decided to fall on the ground.
I shook her wrist that I was holding to get her attention, "Is he sick?" I asked, lifting my index finger to point at the person who's with her. His eyes were rolled up and only the sclera shown and his body was twitching. And what made me think he's sick was that there's foam forming in his mouth.
She ran and went towards him, that I only had to watch her from where I stood. The concerned villagers came together and carries the man to the hospital.
I went to follow them, of course the girl I wanted to talk will also be there.
As a human, I should also feel for her feelings right now, right? But my selfish side didn't bother to think about it twice.
I went to accompany her in the hallways as she waits for probably her sensei to regain consciousness back.
She asked me what do I want from her. I told her straight away that I want to get to know her.
I promised her that I'll only bother her for five to ten minutes and leave. It would be rude if I keep on asking questions without considering her feelings right now.
She was nice and told me a lot of things about herself and her relations to tmher village that even exceeded beyond my expectations.
As I promised, it was only a short talk. I showed my utmost gratitude for her to spare me some time and kindly answered all my questions and also gave me details that I didn't even asked, but it has a strong impact.
I also gave her the box of dango to her. I said that it's for her to eat as she waited for her sensei.
I told her that I still don't want to leave her and spend some time with her, ten long minutes seems so short.
And for the first time since I talked to her, she smiled at me.
"I'll keep your name in mind."
I smiled in return, "this won't be the last time I'll get to talk to you then."
"Perfume."
I snapped out of my reconciliation with my daydream then turned my head on my left side and looked downwards.
He had his right arm at the back of his head that serves as his pillow and his left arm was stretched up in the sky as he reads the notepad he's holding.
"What a weird name to give to a main character," he comments that I only sighed and didn't mind it.
"What are you writing for? A novel?"
"Originally, it's for school article to be published as newspapers. But it came to me that I wanted to make it as a biography," I clarified.
I named her perfume to keep her privacy, just like the other people I interviewed previously.
It was a happy persona at first, stating her likes and dislikes. I even put her favorite food like okonomiyaki, a pancake filled with shrimp, pork, octopus or yam. And her least food was gyosa, it was a kind of dumpling that has a thinner wrapper.
Then I wrote her life where she and her mother moved to a village, but the villagers didn't let them live there for free. Her mother was used to heal to the wounded army of ninja during a war.
Well, if you put it that way, a person has a chakra limit too.
They squeezed every last of bit of her mother's chakra that her life force was taken away from her. And in exchange for her mother, they only thought that she had the same gift like her mother. So they tested it, and found that she also had the same healing talent.
That's how she started to work in exchange for her mom that she didn't even let her mourn over her mother's death.
Tell you what, my ordinary day turns to extraordinary.
It must be sounded great, right?
But instead, it gave me depression that I just wanted to cry, but it doesn't reach to my eyes though.
Schools taught us about peace, in the five great nation there is a kage who governs in order to maintain it. But to hear this side of story makes me feel betrayed.
"So this girl that named 'perfume' was an outsider. And you wrote this?" he muttered and read further on my notes. "Such a grotesque work for a child."
My eyes sharpened and snatched my notes in his hand, "why do you have to talk about it like that? Don't you know that is a true to life story?" (Q_Q)
He only lift his shoulders in shrug, then brought his left arm in the back of his head. "True story or not, you can't just show that kind of story to people like an open book. Human slaves? Human trafficking? Abused in every which way possible? Creating theories on a cold case and conspiracies? Only hypocrites will deny the existence of the other side of this word called truth."
"That's dark," I uttered in deep shock that my jaw dropped. (◎ ロ ◎)
So the story of that girl I've talked about and asked?
I've decided to keep that story just to myself.
But unfortunately, he had read it. (⇀_⇀)
"Your writing sucks."
"Thank you." I don't even have the energy to argue and make a fuss on his negative comments.
It was a sign that something was really wrong about me, but I don't know how to cure it.
He shoot up from lying on the bed of grass and accompanied me on staring on the boulder rocks that have been ruined as he was using it as some kind of punching bag, but it wasn't punching more like piercing through it.
"How far was the final exam now?"
"After two weeks," he answered.
"Only had two weeks to train, huh?" I just wondered when was the finals for seeing the rocks. And I thought that if I was disrupting his training and all.
I don't even know why I went to him knowing that he'll might be busy on training for the finals.
"Your birthday was two weeks away too, right?" He asked.
"Yeah," I answered, but it somehow brought me back to life. I'm emotionally dead inside, alright?
"How'd you know?" I asked.
"You did."
Oh, I don't remember about mentioning about it at all. (￢_￢)
"When is your birthday?"
It's kinda embarrassing. He knew my birthday and I don't know his.
It covered us a long silence that I got me answered that he doesn't want to answer me again.
"It's today."
I turned my head to look at him with my left eyebrow raised. "Pardon?" I asked.
he glared at me for about half a minute. "Today was my birthday," he said bluntly then he look up in the sky again.
What?Σ(▼□▼メ)
"Why didn't you told me about it earlier, at least a day before today?" I almost bursted out.
Another betrayal. (×﹏×)
"You're not asking it so I did not tell you."
okay, sorry (一一)
Maybe that's what was bugging me that I think I forgot something since this morning?
Maybe I asked it before then forgot about it.
"What do you want on your birthday? Like, what kind of gift?" I asked.
"Why do you ask?" he ask back.
"I'll buy it for you." I think, pochi, my pink piggy bank, was heavy after all those years I kept my monthly allowance. Even Kakashi borrowed money from pochi sometimes.
Maybe I can buy what he wanted as a gift for his birthday.
But I think he won't answer me, given to the silence that is present for a while now.
"Just don't leave me."
I looked up in the sky as I my mind made an imaginary trace on the sky where it got it's idea and how it was created.
But it doesn't make sense.
Of course I'll leave later if he'll get back to training, like what will I even do here if I stayed?
"Forget it," he mumbled then he moved and turned his back on me.
Okay, I'll just brush that off my mind then.
"Sasuke-nii-san?"
"What?"
"I didn't bring a gift for you though."
If I've known it earlier then maybe I have one. (─ ─ ") "Oh, I know! I'll just sing for you, neh?" I cleared my throat to prepare myself to sing a special song. "Happy birthday─"
"Your voice was awful."
"I haven't started yet! Why so quick to judge!" ('△´＃)
"You know, I've already counted almost two hundred hairs of the ground possessed that what we call it grass. I am so pissed! And why are you so snob?"
"Keep it up. Make that to one thousand."
I declare, friendship over. (ಥ﹏ಥ)
I fell silent and just stare to the damn space. Trying to make reflection on what I have been doing in my life to this day.
Everything was ordinary, until I talked to her and meet her sensei. Everything had changed, including my mood.
But I can't just brought up and blame 'perfume', because I am the one who chased after her and forced to answer my questions. If I didn't interfere, maybe she and her sensei was already back on their village.
Now I'm sad again to remember that she was an outsider on their village. ( ; ω ; )
If I can just adopt her. ( ╥ω╥ )
I turned my head and look at Sasuke, laying his back on the grass as he was taking a nap or maybe he's sleeping already. He must be tired from his training.
Training? Where you had to exhaust yourself? How hard can it be?
I came close to him to take a good look at his face. I'm curious, what's with that face of him that's why girls likes him.
He's vulnerable. If I just have a camera, I could have take a picture of him, and sell it to his fan girls. I'll be rich in no time.
Well...
I can say that he looks better in a sleeping mode than awake. I mean, he looks harmless and not scary when he's asleep. If he wanted to be good looking, he should sleep forever and never wake up. ( 'ε´ )
I lifted my hand and tried to touch his hair.
It's too thick.
Now that his hair was longer, he looks like a girl.(￢_￢)
Now that I'm close like this to him, I took a good look on his eyelashes.
If he is good looking in the eyes of the fan girls, this must be the reason why.
I'm going to steal it.
I touched his right eyelash by my right index finger carefully and lightly as possible so I will not wake him up as I try to steal it. After touching his eyelash, I touched my right eyelash too using the finger I used to touch his eyelash.
The old saying said that if I want something on someone's figure, like this eyelash, touch it then touch yours too using the same finger you used. Then it'll be passed to you.
I don't know if its true, but there's no wrong on trying. Atleast I tried, I have no regrets!
I touched his left eyelash, doing the same thing as I did lately then I laugh silently to myself.
I've been so greedy that I'm also went to steal his nose, his jawline and his eyebrows.
This is ridiculous!
But I'm happy, even though I haven't get the effects of this magic yet.
"Are you done with your experiment in my face?"
I froze in surprise...He's awake?!
I should be embarrassed for getting caught red-handed, but I'm already thick-skinned when it comes to him. So, it doesn't matter. (ーー゛)
"Did you have fun?"
I glared at him, but his eyes are closed. You should have seen how I glared at you!
It was a sarcasm, but it somehow annoys me.
"There's nothing wrong in trying to use the old method about trying to steal one's appearance permanently."
He opened one of his eyes lazily the returned to closed it both.
"Take what the other's have said, you look like me, so what else do you still want?" He said sleepily.
"You're just saying that to make me feel better." (Q﹏Q)
"I've been meaning to ask you something."
My mood changed, going back to normal as to I'm also confused that he had his turn on asking me a question.
Now that he brought it up, I'm also curious on where his family is. I got a lot of questions after seeing a lot of things back on their clan's district. I just never got the opportunity to ask. You know? It felt kinda sensitive topic that you had to look on any thread that could compatibly connect to it no problem.
Maybe he got the idea on asking it after reading the story I wrote about little miss perfume?
Or maybe I'm just annoying that he wanted to know someone, except for Kakashi, who can he return me too when I got lost and found my way to him.─sorry.o(TヘTo)
"Well, I don't know exactly. Even the hokage gave me a vague story about them. He only told me that both of my parents were gone, probably killed. And I had two older brothers and they were both alive. As for relatives, I have none probably. Considering that possibility, he gave me to Kakashi, maybe I lost everything." My heart sank from realizing my last words. "Including my freedom."
Now, I only wanted to be a lady, cutting flowers, picking fruits and vegetables, feeding cows and her herd of sheep, fishing in the pond and landscaping her garden on the countryside until she grows old and die of old age.
Knowing the story of 'perfume', I don't want to be a ninja anymore.
"No wonder the story you wrote sucks, even in verbal story, you still suck."
Huh?Σ(▼□▼メ)
"So if you really were the best, then tell me yours," I said, trying to pit him on a challenge of story telling.
"The whole clan had been slaughtered when I was seven years old. My mother and Father killed in front of me by my brother."
That was it? That's the ending?
He's worser than I am! (°ㅂ°╬)
If there's something he's good at, he is too good at doing a summary!
But that said, flashbacks on what I've seen back on the Uchiha district came flooding to my mind.
"The white markings and the bloodstains on the floors back to your home," I looked at him, "was that..?"
I can remember back there, those scenes I saw when I was there.
"Hey, you okay?" he asked as he held my wrist and I just noticed that I was currently pulling my hair from the roots. I nodded absent-mindedly. I just remembered that, back when I was there, I saw those things like an old memory, but I knew it wasn't mine.
I wasn't in any place where the mass killing had happened.
I saw two person kneeling on the floor, and a someone from behind them, killed them mercilessly. He was coming to kill me too, but that isn't me.
That piece of memory was from someone, it was only shown to me.
And I was never there, I'm certain of it.
But after that gruesome event happened, I did see that same man slid a window of the room. And as I thought about it, I can tell that it was me and that was my memory.
But that man who commits murder to his own kind, he looked kind and innocent when he looked at me.
He just came to show up for a quick minute. He came to say sorry then left using the window where he used to enter the room I was in.
"Hey."
I was brought back from reality after hearing him calls out. I lifted my chin and look at Sasuke glaring at me, probably annoyed. "I'm sorry."
"Wipe off that fake smile of yours, its annoying," he said then stand up, dusted off his pants and his shirt. "It's bothersome," he growls.
"Wait for kakashi to arrive here. Don't go anywhere," then he left me here and went to where he trains.
[A/N: Maybe I'll stop writing for now......I have no idea what to write next and its too obvious cause the latest chapters getting boring and boring and boring as it goes by.... Bye guys ^_^/ ]