18 Chapter 4

Lee walked into the classroom and threw his bag at his desk, and it amazingly landed square on the tabletop.

Naruto had his head down on his desk and spared a glance at his friend. "Nice shot…"

Lee plopped himself down on the desk in front of his blonde friend. "What's got you down Naruto?"

Naruto closed his eyes. "I think I used more energy than I should have this morning…"

He felt a pair of hands on his shoulders pull him up to an upright position. He looked over his shoulder and saw Ayame kneading his back.

"You're right! Your back is as stiff as a board!"

Shion stepped into the room and walked over to the group. "Ayame, stop being overly friendly with him. You're probably making him uncomfortable."

A content smile formed on Naruto's face and he melted down against his desk. "But it feels really good…"

Ayame lit up. "Doesn't it!?"

Lee chuckled. "She's been working down at the spa in town for a little while now, so she is pretty good. I have her massage my back after track practice sometimes. You wouldn't believe how much strain running puts on your back, most people just think it's your legs but it's really a whole range of-"

Naruto stopped listening to Lee's rant and just enjoyed the sensation on his back. One thing he learned about Lee was that he was a sports nut. Not just a single sport either, he knows pretty much everything about anything that could even remotely have the label of a 'sport'.

Naruto opened his eyes when he was tapped on the head. He looked up at Lee. "Yeah, what is it?"

Lee pouted. "You didn't hear a single thing I said did you?"

Naruto chuckled. "Sorry, I am pretty tired this morning; I was late so I had to run all the way to school."

Lee arched an eyebrow. "Why were you so late?"

Naruto sighed and began to recount the events of the morning, leaving out some of the more embarrassing details.

At the end Lee was laughing hard. "Well that's a bummer since they are going to be swarming soon."

Naruto shot up. "What do you mean? They shouldn't really be around for another month or so?"

Lee laughed and patted Naruto's back. "In the city maybe, but out here in the country they tend to come out much earlier, so you better buy some mosquito nets before they're all gone."

Naruto banged his head on the desk. "Great… And here I thought I was going to have enough money for the month."

Lee flexed his arm. "If you are worried about Hinata-chan, then I would be more than willing to protect her!"

Naruto chuckled. "I think that would worry me more than a mosquito…"

Ayame stopped the massage and Naruto turned around with a pouty look on his face. "Well, I have some mosquito nets at my house if you want to come over and grab a few…"

Shion stood up at her desk. "Then I'll go with you-"

She stopped when she noticed they were all staring at her. She looked away and crossed her arms over her chest with a slight blush before continuing. "Well, it's against school rules for a guy and a girl to walk alone together."

Lee leaned back in his chair. "Huh? But no one has followed that rule for what, the past 30 years or so? And since when did you become such a stickler for the rules anyway?"

He shot forward in his seat with a mischievous look on his face. "Ohhhh! Could it be that you like Naruto over here?"

Naruto gaped at Lee. "Ehhhh?"

Shion narrowed her eyes at Lee and tried to hide her flushed face. "No! Why do you always go to that!?"

Lee smirked. "Then why do you want to go with them?"

There was an awkward few seconds before Ayame got between them. "Well, anyway, it doesn't matter! She is more than welcome to come with us, right Naruto?"

Shion sat back down with a frown on her face. "Never mind, I remembered that I have to do something after school anyways."

Naruto sighed and put his head back on his desk. 'I think it might have been less stressful at home…'