- 8 - Days of Spring -
- 8 - Days of Spring -
-Minaru-
“Good morning, Minaru-chan!”
Naru smiled softly at the Kurama woman that entered her hospital room. “It is a very good morning indeed, Naira-san. What do you have planned for today?”, she asked, still smiling.
It had been three weeks since she first woke up now and Naru was feeling much better. She could sit up on her own now and they had started to get into light training exercises to build up her muscles last week.
“I thought we should try a stroll around one of the forests near the hospital today. I noticed you seemed to do better when you were outside to watch the kids from the children’s ward last week.”, Naira said.
Minaru blushed and nodded. “I was always a scent-orientated person. It calms me to be outside, surrounded by the scents of spring.”, she explained looking down at her hands in her lap.
Naira ruffled her hair, making her look up at her nurse. “Well then I guess you will enjoy this walk. Do you need a hand to get up?”
“No, I’ll be fine. I think.” Naru pushed herself up and swung her legs out of the bed. Once she settled her feet on the ground and stood on still a bit shaky legs she looked at Naira. “Stay close?”, she whispered. She hated how she felt right now, not sure if her body would obey her.
The woman smiled brightly and sidled up to her, wrapping an arm around her waist. “Of course. I won’t let you fall.”
Together they wandered out of the hospital and from there through an almost unused sidealley. Once they reached the first trees Minaru’s smile widened while she took a deep breath. The first hints of honey, leaves and warm sunshine on growing grass. She inhaled once more and started to wander deeper into the forest when she was surprised by a tiny warcry to her left.
She turned and saw a very young Rock Lee hitting a tree in the clearing there. She tilted her head and observed him for a few minutes. Kami, it would take time to wrap her head around the fact that they were all still kids.
Then Naru cleared her throat awkwardly. She didn’t want Lee to think that she was some weirdo stalking him. And she was pretty sure that he would notice her rather sooner than later.
He whirled around and stared at her in absolute surprise. She waved a little. “Hi there. What are you doing there?”
Lee looked a little suspicious to see the girl in his training-space. “Ninja-Training…”, he mumbled.
She smiled brightly at him. “That’s so cool. So you are in the Academy?”
He looked surprised then a massive grin spread over his face. “I am, it’s my first year and it’s so fantastic training to be a shinobi. I’m Lee. Rock Lee. Nice to meet ya.”
She smiled at him. “I’m Minaru. Minaru Kojama. Nice to meet you too, Lee.”
Lee bowed deeply. “Minaru, a beautiful name for a beautiful princess. What led you to this part of the forest, oh fair princess?”, he asked grinning.
“I was taking a walk to see if I could stay on my feet long enough.”, she explained laughing. Princess? What a nickname.
He looked at her in askance, immediately sobering. “Stay on your feet for long enough? What do you mean?”
She looked at Naira who was waiting at the edge of the clearing. The Nurse kept an inquisitive eye on both of the children. “I… was hurt pretty badly a few weeks ago. I’m still recovering from that.” Minaru explained.
Lee followed her gaze over to where Naira was leaning against a tree. He bowed silently and looked back at Minaru. “You look fine to me. Maybe a bit tired.”, he said tilting his head.
She smiled lightly. “You can’t see my scars because they are not on my skin.”, she said. “The tiredness is part of that, I guess.”
Lee giggled. “You talk funny.” He gasped and clasped a hand in front of his mouth. His eyes widened almost comically. “Not that that’s a bad thing. It’s just I’ve never heard someone our age talk like you.” He was quick to add.
Naru smiled softly and shook her head. “No offense taken, Lee-kun. I know that I talk in a peculiar way for a child of not even 10 years.” Having a millenia old Spirit sealed inside of you did that to you she guessed. She looked around the clearing and noticed that most of the trees had the same punch-marks than the tree Lee had been hitting when she came around. “Do you come out here often?”, she asked and pointed at some of the marks.
He nodded. “Uh-huh. Almost every day after classes are out. I need to become stronger if I want to become a shinobi even though I can’t manipulate chakra like the other students.”, he said.
She looked at him, feigning surprise. “You can’t manipulate chakra?”, she asked.
She had heard about that in her life as Naruto but never really bothered to actually talk with the older boy. Curious since Lee was very similar to Naruto’s outside Persona. She couldn’t really explain why Naruto hadn’t been fast friends with the loud Taijutsu-Master.
Lee sobered up and looked at the ground, his cheeks stained red. Naru guessed he hadn't planned to tell her that, but it slipped out. “No.”, he mumbled.
Naru placed a hand on his shoulder and said: “Me neither.” She heard Naira gasp right behind her and looked over her shoulder. She lifted one eyebrow at the shocked look on the Kurama’s face. “It’s my own body we are talking about, Naira-san. Did you guys think I wouldn’t notice that my chakra-System is that badly damaged?”, she asked with a still raised eyebrow.
The woman swallowed visibly. “When did you figure it out?”, she asked in almost a whisper.
Naru shrugged. “When I was able to move more comfortably again I checked my Tenketsu. They aren’t blocked like most Jutsu would do it but irreversibly burned.”
Lee placed his own hand over hers that still rested on his shoulder. “So… you lost that ability by accident?”, he asked.
She smiled sadly. “Something like that.” More like she burned them herself to get out of the lab. It was a high price she had paid. But she would do it again if need be.
After that first encounter she went to see Lee at least once a week while recovering in the hospital.
She learnt that he was in the middle of his first year at the academy. This summer he would be beginning the second year and he already had decided that Neji would be his greatest rival like Kakashi-sensei to his big idol, Guy. Naru was glad to see that he was so similar to the Lee she remembered from Naruto's life.
After two weeks she started to relocate her training - stretching and push-ups mostly, to rebuild her muscles - to the clearing. Lee trained his punches and kicks with the trees and she was going through her own routines. Most of the time was spent in silence but when they took a break they would talk about anything and everything.
Naira and sometimes even Anko went with Minaru to oversee her progress and the Snake-Summoner took one look at Lee - who was trembling slightly at the sight of the Jounin - and started giving him directions.
Minaru laughed lightly while looking at the two while Anko was teaching him a new kicking-technique.
“What’s so funny, kiddo?”, Anko asked, coming over to her side to correct her stance on a stretching pose.
“Nothing. Just that I didn’t expect you of all people to suddenly start teaching a pretty young Academy-student.”, she snickered.
“Gah! Don’t go around making assumptions, you little squirt!” Anko screeched and caught her in an armlock. But not overly strongly, she was just trying to hide how ashamed she was of the girl catching on, hiding her red face in Minaru’s hair.
Minaru laughed and wrapped an arm around Anko’s waist. “Don’t worry. Your secret will always be safe with me, Anko-san.”, she teased in a whisper.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about!” Anko said and turned her nose up.
Minaru leaned against her and yawned. “Of course not.”, she said closing her eyes. She smiled when she felt Anko’s arms close around her to lift her up into the Snake-Summoners arms.
“If I were Shikaku or any other Nara I would tell you how troublesome you are, kiddo.”, Anko grumbled good naturedly.
“I know.” Minaru snuggled closer to her chest and fell asleep there.
------
Chick?
Naru whirled around on her spot in the mindscape and threw her arms around the Phenix that was still half curled up in the nest. But Raya had raised her head a little and blinked at her. “Raya! You’re finally awake!” She absolutely did not squeal in delight at seeing the Phenix awake.
How long was I out of it? Raya asked curiously. She looked around the area, surely taking in the changes Naru had implemented while Raya slept. The forest was lusher now and there was only a small clearing around the brook and Raya’s nest. Several shrines littered the forest floor.
“Almost two whole months. You scared me, you know. But I had to believe that you would wake up.” Naru took a small step back from Raya and stared at the ground, worrying the hem of her shirt. She hated feeling like that, but she needed Raya. The Phenix was the only “person” in this time and space who could really understand her.
Raya, who had been stretching herself to work out some kinks from staying in the same position for too long, froze. Then she wrapped her wings around Naru and rubbed her beak against the top of the girl’s head, ruffling her hair in the process. Don’t you worry your pretty little head, Chick. I will not leave you. We are bound now, you will never be alone again.
Naru sighed lightly and rested her cheek against the warm feathers on Raya’s chest. She hugged her, or at least reached her arms as far as she could around the Phenix’s torso. “I’m scared, Raya. I feel like I lost myself when I woke up in this new body who doesn’t even have the same gender…”, she said, shivering lightly. “I know that I played it off as nothing at the beginning, but…”
Shsh, I know. The Phenix trilled deep in her throat and wrapped her whole body around the girl when tears started to trickle down her cheeks. I know how hard it will be for us. For you especially. Now, tell me what happened while I was unconscious.
Naru wiped at the tears and sniffed once before beginning: “I had to stay in the hospital for the last weeks because they found out that Danzo used some sort of drug on us in the lab. It partly destroyed our muscles and they weren’t able to find any sort of antidote yet. Oh, and Tsunade and Shizune are in Konoha now because Lord Sandaime called them back home to figure out an antidote for us.”
Raya tilted her head. Tsunade and Shizune? The Slug-Princess that was the Fifth Hokage in your old timeline and her pupil? But are you fine now, Chick? What about the drug?
Naru nodded. “Yep, I'm fine. I think you being sealed in me caused my self-healing to fight the drug so I was able to wake up and get better even though the other two haven't. Oh, and I met Lee about three weeks ago and we are training together three to four times a week. And Anko-san seems to have taken a liking to Lee and me, she helps us with the training quite often.”
Who would have thought that Orochimaru’s former pupil would have a soft spot for children. Raya laughed lightly.
A soft smile appeared on Naru's face. “I think we remind her of herself when she was still a kid. As far as I remember she was an orphan, too.”, she said.
The Phenix nodded. That is definitely a possibility. Anything else I should know?
Naru shook her head. “Not yet. But the Sandaime announced he would be coming to see me tomorrow morning. And I asked to meet the Kurama-woman who helped Shikaku-san and his team to rescue me. I guess she will be coming over in the next few days as well.”, the girl told her tenant.
Raya tilted her head, looking surprised. A Kurama actually helped them? I wouldn’t have thought so after the things your aunt told us about what happened with your father and mother.
Minaru nodded and leaned against Raya’s side. “That’s why I want to meet her. I want to get the story from someone who actually knows it first hand.” She clapped her hands once. “Okay. But enough of me. I have a few questions for you.”
Raya chuckled. Shoot.
“Okay. First... Is there any other effect of you being sealed inside me? Besides the increased self-healing I mean.”
We will have to see. I think that we will become more in sync with each other over time and you should develop more of my quirks with that. But for now I would guess the self healing we already noticed and very accurate chakra-sensing abilities., Raya explained.
“Huh.” Minaru nodded. “Yeah, I already noticed that I was able to tell pretty easily where anybody in my vicinity is. Even with people I shouldn’t normally be able to sense.”
Raya shot her a surprised look, tilting her head. What kind of people do you mean?
“Some Anbu, but mostly it seems to be Root-agents. I noticed those seem to flock around my hospital room, taking shifts, watching me. They scatter once Shikaku-san, Tenzo-taichou or Anko-san come to visit me. And I think Kakashi-sensei passed by a few times as well even if I haven’t seen him yet, but I think I noticed his scent.”
Scent?, Raya asked.
“My sense of smell seems to be heightened in comparison to the one I’m used to from Naruto’s timeline. Quite a bit. I was able to tell by scent who was in my room before my sight returned.”
Raya was silent for a while. So… Root-agents are keeping eyes on you, so we will surely have to deal with them in the near future. But I don’t know where your heightened sense of smell comes from. Maybe you got it from you Clan, I think Akane mentioned something about Big Cats of Prey, right? Minaru nodded. Raya hummed in thought. I might have an idea where your heightened senses come from then, but I will have to tell you the story of how the first Rayani came to be for that. And we don’t have enough time for that right now, I sense someone approaching your body.
Minaru cursed lightly and ripped herself out of her mindscape to face whoever Raya had sensed.