Chapter 73: It Could Be Sweet, Pt. 2

After Usagi had her way with Kannin's hair, it was half as long as it was before. The long, shaggy mess that had adorned his scalp had been tamed down to about shoulder length, and was brushed through. With the new outfit, Kannin really did look quite nice, nothing at all like the more rough around the edges look he came back from the war with: the whole long shaggy hair and cloak look.

"There," Usagi said with satisfaction, "you look presentable now."

Kannin was just about done with being manhandled, and decided not to protest once she finished. He couldn't say he hated his look beforehand, there was something to be said for the more rugged look, but he knew that his new look wasn't too bad either. He did keep his mom from combing his hair over--that was too much, even for him.

After that, Kannin put on some socks and shoes, and grabbed his wallet before heading out. Kannin left about an hour before he was supposed to meet with Warai, hoping to buy some flowers on the way. When he went back into town, now bearing his spiffy new clothes, he took a moment to soak in the atmosphere.

Konoha, while not officially at peace, hadn't been in serious hostilities for a few months, and life was creeping back into the village, especially with the recent celebrations for Minato's succession to Hiruzen. The air was somehow freer, flowing briskly across the dusty streets, carrying the fallen leaves and scents of the city. An azure glow seemed to emanate from the sky, only interrupted by the cotton clouds and the blazing sun.

As the wind whistled through the alleyways, Kannin made his way to a florist and bought a nice looking bouquet before walking to the Uchiha compound. As he walked up the the gate, he again saw Shisui hanging out by the front, this time he looked to be gearing up for a mission.

"Looking fancy, there, Shisui." Kannin said with a smile

"My team is being sent on a patrol mission later." The kid replied

Kannin's face dimmed a little, if he had his guess, this would be the mission that gave him the Mangekyo. Brightening his face in a moment, Kannin said with a smile,

"Good luck Shisui." he said, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder, "do your best."

Shisui gave a nice smile and high-fived Kannin before Kannin went over and leaned against he gate outside Warai's house. 10 minutes or so later, he heard the door slide open. Looking over, he saw Warai's mother, Hoya, beckoning someone further back in the house to the door, and in a moment, Warai herself came out. She was wearing a deep crimson yukata-style dress which flared to an orangey-yellow on the edges. Her straight black hair was tied back into a ponytail and secured with a long black pin. She looked beautiful.

It seemed that their respective looks shocked each other, and the two spent a moment digesting their counterpart's outfits before walking off.

"You look quite nice, Kannin." Warai said, leading the way

"Well I can say the same for you," Kannin managed to cough out, "plus, it would be bad taste to show up in military attire, wouldn't it?"

"I'm glad you're smart enough to know that much"

"So," Kannin asked, "where are we going?"

"I told you, it's a secret..."

Warai led him to the restaurant, a nice little place only a few people seemed to know about--in fact, the head waiter seemed a little surprised when they walked in. He led them to a table for two where Kannin was able to get a good look at the whole place. The design centered around bamboo and wood, with pale greens and tan-yellows dominating the color palette; there were two other groups in the room, but they were far enough away that their conversation was just indistinct murmuring. They could hear the clattering and shouting emanating from the kitchen, where too there was the distinct scent of spices and steam seeping from the crack above the door, which swung open every so often with another order.

"Nice place, huh?" Kannin said as he sat down

"Nice enough," Warai said, "their sushi is the really good part"

They both picked up their menus and took a look at the options. It seemed like Warai had purposefully chosen a place that didn't make ramen. There were only sections for sushi and stir fry, which struck Kannin as a strange combination. He figured he's just try some sushi since Warai had mentioned it. In his previous life, Sam, no, Kannin--it had been a while since he had thought of himself as Sam--he had only had those really bad Americanized sushi types in his last life, and for the last few years he'd gotten by on military rations and ramen, so this was his opportunity to try the real thing.

So he ordered a sushi platter, and Warai did too. While they waited for the food to come out, Kannin tapped his fingers on the table thinking of something to break the ice with. A moment of that passed before Warai sighed and said

"You're really not good at this are you?"

Kannin's finger tapping stopped before he looked up and said "Well...it's not like I've had that much experience with this kind of stuff." He paused for a moment before adding, "So what should I do?"

Warai laughed and said, "Well I don't know, ask me about my day? Tell me I look pretty? Something simple like that."

"Ok well..." Kannin said, "how was your day?"

"Well, since you asked so nicely..." Warai responded with a smile before telling him. "I woke up this morning and ate breakfast, put on my dress and met you a few hours after that. Riveting."

Strike 1, it seemed. Kannin adjusted his position in the chair before saying, "Ok then...Anything interesting or cool happen recently?"

Warai smiled before saying "Well now that I think about it the scrawny kid I used to beat on in school asked me out a few days ago, so that's pretty funny. What about you?"

Chuckling, Kannin responded, "Very funny, Warai."

He took a sip of his water before seeing the waiter come around with their food. The platters were put in front of them both, where Kannin saw "real" sushi: it was a lot simpler than he knew, just 2 or 3 ingredients per piece, and a few sauces and garnishes on the side. On the whole, not as flashy, but he was sure it tasted great.