Chapter 11

Slowly, my mind floats to the surface but I'm not anywhere near truly waking up. Still, I can feel a certain warmth surrounding me. Instinctively, I turn around and try to get closer to that warmth. Whatever its source is, it's firm yet has a certain softness to it. The source shifts a little and something wraps around my back and hip. I can also feel a pleasant pressure entangling my legs. And the smell enveloping me is soothing. Familiar. I get even closer to the source and rub my face against it. I hear a grunt.

"Shizu…" a deep, grumbling voice mumbles right next to my ear.

"Mhmm?" I hum back. I'm still not quite awake yet. But I'm getting there, I promise.

"We gotta get up…" the voice tells me.

"Dun wanna…" I mumble back, huffing, as I snuggle even closer.

"C'mon, Shizu, we really need to…" Wait, I recognize this voice. It's Kakashi's! Instantly, I'm wide awake. Holy crap… I'm cuddling with Kakashi… I slowly turn my head upwards to look at him and meet his lone, sleepy-looking eye. I can feel him take his arm off my shoulders and uses it to ruffle my hair.

"Stop it, Kashi…" I huff at him with an annoyed pout, but that bastard just chuckles. Still, he does stop and gets out of bed, revealing his wonderfully toned body. Damn, even though all those layers of clothes I can clearly see his muscles. And the predatory way he moves when he walks… Good thing that I don't easily get a physical reaction. But with this sinful man – who knows when this traitorous body of mine decides to openly show my attraction.

"I'm going to head down to see what's up with the rest. Take your time getting ready, your injuries still are in the process of healing," he tells me, already standing at the door. When the heck did he manage to change his clothes? And when did he manage to go to the bathroom? Did I blackout for a while or what? Don't tell me that the collision with the tree back then has left me with brain damage…

Feeling somewhat hungry, I eventually force myself to get out of bed and walk towards the door. However, when I walk past the table, I see the bandages lying there again. Right, I have to change mine somehow. If only Kakashi hadn't left already. I really need his help with those. Guess I'll have to leave it for after we're done with breakfast. I exit the room and immediately hear the voices of the rest of my team in the hallway. To announce myself, I decide to put some more weight into my steps and extend the claws on my feet. In case you didn't know, I'm always walking barefoot since I have no need for sandals or boots or whatever. Being part cat apparently also means that I have padded soles. These pads may seem somewhat leathery, but they are really durable and temperature resistant. I once accidentally stepped into a pile of glass yet, while I felt the uneven pressure of the shards, none of them managed to harm me even in the slightest.

So, with every 'click' of my claws hitting the wooden floor, the others grow quieter and quieter until finally, they fall completely silent by the time I reach the dining room. All heads are turned my way and their gazes make me feel uncomfortable. Can you please not stare at me like that? My eyes center in on Kakashi, who gives me that patented one-eyed smile of his. I smile back at him. As for the rest, I mumble a barely audible "'Morning" and start making my way over to the table. Sakura and Sasuke both wordlessly focus their attention back on their food. Naruto, however, ganks me and within seconds appears right in front of me, his face barely a few inches away from my own, staring me straight into my eyes. I stand frozen in place not daring to move. Ever heard of personal space? Obviously not since you're currently invading mine. Can you, like, move away a little? Please? And what's your deal anyway?

"Ne, ne~ are you okay now? Didn't get cut really badly by that Zabuza guy? And how were you able to fight like that? Where did you learn those moves? Can you teach me?" He starts barraging me with questions, and honestly, I am overwhelmed. I don't really know how to handle this much enthusiasm this early in the morning. I need sugar. Out of desperation, my eyes drift over to Kakashi. Help?

"Ma, ma~, Naruto, calm down why don't you. Must you overwhelm poor Shizuya this early in the morning? Give him some space and let him eat something first," he admonishes the hyperactive knucklehead. Thank you, Kakashi, you are officially my hero. Naruto backs off and scratches his head before apologizing and going back to his seat. With nobody blocking my way anymore, I walk over to the table and sit in the empty spot right next to Kakashi. Under the table, he puts his hand on my thigh, rubbing it with his thumb in a soothing manner. The tension, that I didn't even notice I had, gradually subsides.

"Anyway, Shizuya," Kakashi speaks up, "How good are you with your chakra control?"

"Right, right! While you were out, Sakura-chan, Sasuke-teme, and I have been training how to climb trees!" Naruto says full of excitement.

"You and Sasuke-kun are training to climb trees. I'm already done. And Sasuke-kun will surely grasp it soon enough, while you… hmph!" Sakura says, drawing a long "But Sakura-chan~" from the blonde. I look at Kakashi for an explanation. Tree climbing? Had there been something like that in the anime? I can't remember. But I can very easily climb trees – I'm a freaking cat-human, duh. Why would I need chakra for that? Oh, or is it something like a leveled-up version of the leaf exercise we did back at the academy?

"Well, I've been teaching them to walk up trees without hands, only using chakra. So?" I see. So it is like the leaf exercise. I never had any problems with that so it should probably be fine.

"I don't know but I was the fastest to master the leaf exercise back in class when Iruka-sensei taught us about chakra. So you tell me, does that count as good or not?" I shrug. Kakashi rubs his chin in contemplation before saying, "Well, let's let you try it once for yourself and if everything goes well, you can just join Sakura in watching Tazuna-san."

I agree to his proposal and we continue with our breakfast. We shall see how things will go.

~•°•~•°•~•°•~•°•~

As it turns out, I'm extremely fucking good at chakra control, better than even the pink banshee. Unfortunately, this also means that I'm on guard duty with the latter. It is uneventful, really. Tazuna is too occupied with work and Sakura is probably daydreaming about her beloved, dear Sasuke-kun. And me? Well, I'm trying to survive boredom by helping out the workers. Normally I would've just taken a nap, but I have to keep up appearances and behave like a professional shinobi of Konoha and whatnot. Can't sleep on the job, now can I. So for hours, I keep on transporting wood and stone palettes from one point to another – wherever the workers need me. I feel like a fucking pack mule. Or an MMORPG player doing quests. It kinda does feel like it when all these bastards are saying is "Get this wood over to [insert dude's name], he needs it" or "Get me [insert tool name], I've left it lying somewhere around [points in a general direction]". And let me tell you what – it fucking sucks! I'm not your damn slave! Why did I bother offering my help to them in the first place? I'm already regretting this, especially since there are still a few days left. Too many days. I wanna go take a nap. And cuddle in my bed. Preferably with Kakashi. Sigh.

Luckily, soon enough the sun begins to set, drowning the world in shades of oranges, pinks, and reds – it looks like everything is on fire - as dark blues invade the sky, signaling the night's approach. It also signals the end of a day of hard work. Finally, about time. I take a deep breath and lower the stack of stones I've been carrying for the past few minutes. I'm so done I don't even care about food. All I want is to fall onto my bed and not have to move a single muscle for at least a week or so. Yeah, that ain't gonna happen. Though I do hope that those bastards on the bridge won't shift all of the menial labor on me again. I'm a shinobi for Christ's sake. My task is to guard the bridge builder and fight off any possible attackers, not build the bridge myself. And I'm still injured, I even told them so, but no, let the twelve-year-old that is covered in bandages carry all the shit that was originally meant to be carried by adults. I demand a pay raise! I fucking earned it!

"You don't seem very happy, Shizu," I hear a familiar voice drawl behind me.

"You don't say," I grumble back. I then hear him walk up behind me. He practically drapes himself over me, putting his head atop mine.

"You're heavy," I complain.

"What happened?" He completely ignores what I've said.

"I was degraded to a slave. They've made me carry their heavy shit all day long, even though I clearly told them that I'm injured. But then they were all like "But you're a shinobi under contract, so you have to do what we tell you to!" Who am I to talk back to a client, ey?" I get angrier with every word. Suddenly, the silver-haired cyclops uses my shoulders to prop himself up on one of his arms while using the other to thoroughly mess up my hair. It seems to have become a bad habit of his. Why is it always my hair, damn it?!

"I know it sucks, but good job on handling the situation the way you did. Once we're done and are back in Konoha, I'll take you out to eat something nice, sounds good?"

"Well, if you put it this way – consider me bribed," I grin up at him; a grin that he returns.

"How are you feeling?" He asks after a while.

"Exhausted. The injuries hurt. I've probably opened a cut or two, so I'll have to rewrap them once I'm back in my room. And I would kill for a nice shower right now," I sigh.

"Hmm~ let me help you with that," he hums.

"With the killing?" I joke.

"No, the bandages," he deadpans, and, without any warning, he picks me up the same way he had done last night. This time I did NOT yelp. I swear I didn't! I didn't make a sound… That bastard is shaking with laughter again! Damn it! Can't he just ignore it or something?! Stupid Kakashi! What was the Japanese word for idiot again? Baka? Baka Kakashi then. No, Bakashi. Yeah, that fits him just right.

"Quit laughing, Bakashi." His eye widens as his smile vanishes. Shit, did I say something I shouldn't have? "I'm sorry? Did I say something bad?" I ask him hesitantly. He quickly collects himself and his smile returns, only this time it's a sad one.

"Ah, no, not really. I just haven't heard this name in a long time. But I guess it's fine if you use it," he replies.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"If you say so, Bakashi," I say with a drawl. He huffs a small laugh at this and says "You have a surprisingly teasing side to you, ne~ Shizu-chan."

"You were the one who started the whole nickname thing, so you have no right to complain."

"Ma~ Shizu-chan, how about we go back. It's already pretty late," he proposes and carries me towards the house. Some of the workers give us weird looks – a mixture of curiosity and guilt. They probably think that they've overworked me to a point where I'm no longer able to properly move and thus needed to be carried. The threatening glare Kakashi is throwing their way probably doesn't help either. Well, that can only mean that tomorrow is going to be much easier. Hopefully.

But first, it's time for a glorious shower and a good amount of sleep.