Endurance: my ninja way

Chapter 13

RIN! NO STOP! RIN!! " I woke up to Kakashi's disturbing moans. I peeked down to where he laid beside the extinguished fire that he lighted few hours back. What I saw was really astonishing.

Kakashi sat beside the crumbled wooden ashes, out of breath, sweating like hell! He's completely out of his character. He's holding one of his hand with the other as if it'll kill him if he let go! I never thought he'd be afraid of anything, let alone his own body parts! He's completely frightened of something absolutely invisible, well, atleast to me.

As if on cue he started running like a mad man! I jumped down to see what's making him go all runny and sweaty and frightened. Well, there's nothing! I followed him "Kakashi wait! What is it!?! KAKASHI!!! " I screamed at the top of my lungs.. he slowed down, looked back, I'm sprinting full speed ahead to catch him. As if he sees something recognizable, he started running towards me. I stopped following to see what the hell is he doing now!

"Rin! Oh my god! Is it really you!?! Are you alright?! Oh I'm so glad you're okay! " kakashi to my dumbstruck face, cupping it all the while.

"Whaaa.. " that's all I could come up with...

And out of no where he's hugging, well, more like squeezing the life out of me! "Oww, dude the hell! Whats wrong with you!!" I tried escaping his death trap of a hug "Get. Off. Me. You. Grumpy!!" With final push, throwing him away! What's the matter with him!

"Rin, look I'm sorry. I should've been there.. " taking a step closer, I had enough of it, I don't know what screwed him in the forest but I'm not getting squeezed at his hands just now!

Out of impulse, I slaped him square in the face! "Snap out of it grumpy! I'm not Rin ! It's me, Yuuma!"

As if he came to, he stepped out of his revere and backed off.

"I I'm s sorry. I I didn't... " he trailed off in the middle of the sentence. I was so freaked out at his dumbfounded self that I didn't even stop him at first as he started towards the tree.. I quietly followed, went to my spot at the tree and stared at the shaken kakashi at the roots.. it was as if for the first time I got to see the human side of the man I'd been living with for 6 months..

Without an alarm, I saw the light creep out of the tree heads, the sky resembled my confusion.. different shades of the new day wiping out the horrors that the night had revealed..

I felt something move beneath me, I saw kakashi standing up. Without a warning, he started towards the lake. Now what ?! I followed..

"Get freshen up, we'll leave as soon as there's enough light to see" came as a command. I nodded, then realised he had his back on me.

"Right. " my feeble attempt to match his tone of command.

At the lake we sat, him, a little bit ahead of me at the edge of the bank.. okay, so this awkwardness has continued for a while now, it has to end...

On the impulse I stood up, backed away a few steps then ran full speed at him pushing him at the contact into the freezing lake :3 have a little morning bath grumpy..

At first, his shock ridden face broke through the still surface, rippling the water all the while. The came the sonic boom
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"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOUR OVER SIZED CRAP FILLED HEAD?! " Finally!

"I'm hungry, we won't be able to return home, it'll be time for my training by the time we get back.. fetch me some food" in my nice normal un-freaked out tone.. God I'm so releaved at his murderous expressions..

Without saying another word, he made his way back to the bank, pulled himself up and with no effort at all threw me into the lake! Yeah he actually freaking THREW ME! "What the hell grumpy! You're supposed to take care of me! " through my gritted freezing teeth.

"You stink. " his precise accurate reply..

He went into the woods and came back with my overcoat filled with fruits. This guy needs to learn how to live with the humans.

"Eat all you want then if its okay with you lord Yuuma, lets get the hell out of this hell hole! " he mocked me..

I hadn't eaten for an eternity now.. I simply put all that I could get my hands on, into my mouth... and in no time I was full to explode.

"Okay then grumpy lets go." I simply stated.

The journey back was as soundless as the night before, only, it was the normal silence. By the time I reached the hokage's place it was almost my time to train.

"You're quite early today. " the guards really need to state the obvious, I guess..

Without any comments I made my way to my training area.. today's training was thankfully not some exhausting one.. it was a simple practice of feats.. but it will continue throughout the day.. oh man so much for saving the world..

During my practice, I remembered I had to ask the old man how sane he is after putting me with a guy my age, stronger than me, well at the time I came at least, for a whole damn year..

"So gramps, pray tell, what in the world is wrong with the people in this village?! I mean I thought I was given safety so that I can defeat the infiltrator later on!! "

"My dear Yuuma, what's bothering you? Did anyone try to harm you in any way? " his humble reply..

"Gramps tell me one thing, what's sane about putting me up with kakashi for a whole year?!" I tried reasoning

"Did kakashi do something?! Its very unlikely to be true but if he did, rest assure, he will be punished. " now he seemed angry. I felt sorry for grumpy, this system is far too fierce..

"No. No he did nothing of that sort. Its just that you put me with him for a whole year, knowing that I'm a woman. I mean, I thought maybe its because he's like your age or something, but recently I found out, he's actually my age. I don't know gramps, it doesn't add up in my head. " I made it sound as not accusing as I could..

"Oh I see, what you're concerned about." He chuckled " let me tell you Yuuma, if there's anyone in this village that I can blindly trust with a client as precise as yourself, its Kakashi. He's one of the best ninjas throughout the nations with the right set of mind. If anything, I only have complete faith in him. He will never let his missions fail, but most important, he will never ever hurt a comrade. " the trust he speaks of is visible in his aging eyes.

After that I don't think I need any assurance, I trust lord hokage, and if he trusts Kakashi, I trust him too..

After the training, same old grumpy with no words accompanied me to our dwelling... last night's event, though I act as they didn't happen, it'll only make things more awkward, I know they did happen. And now I really need to know what was all that about.

There's no way in hell he'll tell me himself, and so I need to talk to someone else, but not when kakashi's around.. and I know just how to make that possible... :D