Haru-Chan-cake's Journal

Hi guys! Chapter three came out like a ninja of the night. Sorry to use such an unfamiliar character (lelouch) to you (Tia, Kaitlynne, and Katie), but he fit the role perfectly. Follow this link to watch the English dubbed episodes for free!! (They're at Imeem; Click the guy's name to see the rest of the episodes) http://www.imeem.com/people/TpsxrjB/video/lsNTtxiH/code_geass_episode_1_animation_video/


TIA! YOU BETTER UPDATE SOON OR ELSE!!! lol.

LOLZ, you guys. You will never guess what I found while I was looking through my old crap!!

It's...
That horrible "Down the Rabbit Hole" Naruto story! And just to make your eyes bleed, you can read it HERE!!!

ENJOY!!! but not really XD XD XD



Naruto Story Chapter ONE:

Life. Comes at you fast, huh? Well, I know exactly how you feel. My life can be psychotic
at times--cruel math teachers, social studies teachers who give you waaaay too
many sheets to fill out, evil brothers who call you fat (when you're average
weight!) and have crusty hello kitty fruit snacks under their bed, divorced
parents...and much, much more overexaggerated stuff. Especially so after
today...


The sun sparkled a little too brightly through the window in the math room. It
was 1:14; sixteen more horrific minutes of horrific math until horrific
science...then home! For a three-day weekend! YESSSS!!!! It racked in my
brain, scratching, itching to be free. I looked over at my friend Kaitlynne who
was moved across the room from me. We talk a lot, okay?


She's sleeping. How typically Kaitlynne. Kaitlynne was truly a cloudwatcher. I
swear, during the winter she'd go online to the internet to look at freakin'
PICTURES of clouds. It bugged me. I like clouds as much as the next guy,
but not as much as Kaitlynne.


Our math teacher Ms. Murphy rambled on about factoring polynomials or quadratic
functions or Lord knows what we'll never use in life. Honestly, why would
I need math? My aspirations were to become an artist or author. I loved
to write and draw. They were my passions.


A gentle breeze wafted into the room. I looked out the window. Summer shone all
around. I breathed in the soft, warm air. Somewhere off in the near distance
bells rang like twinkling stars. Like a wind chime or something. Upon closer
observation, I spotted a piece of some sort of material hooked to the corner of
the school's red roof. It was black with a spot of red outlined with white that
twisted around it. The picture reminded me of a cloud. However, when I blinked the material disappeared. This
caused thoughts to arouse in my head.


What was that? Was it clothing? Who would be on the roof?


"Do you have an answer, Miss Rachael?" Ms. Murphy asked, haste in her voice,
meaning she had probably asked me more than once.


"Huh?" I asked stupidly. The class chuckled. The boy next to me, Matt, laughed.
"Oh...uh...25?" I said, not sure. Ms. Murphy searched my eyes with a sinister
gaze.


"Good," she concluded, going back to the homework. Matt looked at me and shook
his head.


"You're a spaz."



"Shut up, I know!" I quipped, a little too loudly. A gust of wind whipped
through, surprising everyone as papers and assignments flew everywhere. People
laughed and "WHOA"d and went crazy. Ms. Murphy called to order. I just
stared out the window, dangerously curious.

After quickly gathering everything I needed for the sleepover with Katie
cheering behind and rushing me, we had finally made it over to Kaitlynne's. Tia was already
there.


"A WHAT?!" I shouted. Kaitlynne winced at my volume.


"Yeah, my mom wants us to go on a hike. She says 'it's a beautiful day, go play
in the woods'. It's really dumb, I know."


"So freakin' gay..." I mumbled. Oh, how I loathed excercise. The sun I could
handle--but a steep hill...? No.
Oh well...



And so the adventure began... tripping over tree roots, cutting ourselves on
rocks, long grass tickling our legs. It was terrible! The sun blared down on our
heads, burning into our retinas.


"UGH! I HATE THIS!" I shouted. Tia nodded, silent. She was in the front while I
trailed far behind on my hands and knees.


"Good Lord, Rachael!" Katie laughed. "You're so pitiful!" I glared.


"Shut up! I know!" I quipped. A powerful rage burned inside me. I stood up and ran to the front of
the pack and then felt a hole begin to swallow my feet.


And then my knees.


And then my waist.


Just as I thought I was about to go completely under, six hands grabbed my
remaining arm. The black hole had swallowed everything other than my right
shoulder and arm, and my neck and head. I screamed like I belonged in a mental
institution.


"OH MY GOD! HELP ME!!" I started cussing crazily and then hyperventilating. The
three of them grunted, trying to pull me out. "You guys! Tivo Naruto for me! I'm
gonna make it even if this hole swallows me whole!" I shouted. Kaitlynne
laughed.


"But you've already seen every episode!" she panted, pulling as hard as
possible.


"I DON'T GIVE A SH--" then in a sudden burst of energy, the hole sucked me in
along with all my friends into everlasting and bottomless darkness and doom.


RESULTS:

I awoke on a hard cobblestone path. The sun blared into my vulnerable eyes. I looked around.


"Kaitlynne? Katie? Tia?" I asked, three similar people lying around me. I looked
up. Two immense green gates towered overhead with red kanji painted on them. I
recognized the words.


Konohagakure.





Thanks for reading! Here's a picture of Rachael, Kaitlynne, Tia, and Katie!

http://s91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/?action=viewt=thefour.jp
g

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/thefour.jpg




CHAPTER TWO:

At first I thought I was in a warm bed with silken sheets and cream-colored
linen curtains floating gently in the wind. The warm aroma of cinnamon wafted
about the room. As soon as reality came back to me, I suddenly realized I was
laying on a cold, hard pathway. Memories flashed in my brain. I bolted upright.


"Oh, god, that's right..." I said to myself.


"What's right?" I heard a voice asked. I turned around. It was Katie. She rubbed
her eyes. "Where am I?" she asked. Kaitlynne awoke next.


"Nyehh...so bright..." she mumbled. Her hair seemed a lot more orange than
usual--and did have green eyes! She smiled at the sight of white,hazy clouds. I
looked around for Tia. I saw another person, but it wasn't Tia. Or that's what I
thought...


"Nnn...ow...my head..." the anonymous person murmured.



"Tia?" Kaitlynne asked. The girl spun around.


"What?" She replied. We all gasped in shock. Tia was much taller--5'6", maybe.
Her brown hair was a bit shorter, more of a bob-cut style. Her eyes were
lighter. She seemed...mature.


"How old are you, Tia?" I asked quickly.


"25," she immediately replied as if it was a reflex, then clasped a hand over
her mouth. Awestruck, Tia looked around for a mirror. Unable to find one, we took a long look at the immense
emerald gates. Behind them were characters from our favorite TV show, the ones
we had dreamed of. I looked at the others.


"Let's go inside," I suggested.


"Wait," Katie intervined. We turned to face her. Her eyes were more of a teal
and her hair was a light shade of brown, highlighted with blonde. "We can't go
in, yet. We don't have headbands. Or names!" We stared at her. "If we tell them
our, God forbid, Western names, we'll turn out as the biggest Mary-Sues ever.
And the only provisions we have are from our backpacks." Oh, yeah. We had
brought backpacks with us on our hike, just in case. But only five dollars or
something, so money wise, we were probably broke.


"Damn," Kaitlynne said. Alas, she still didn't have any common sense. I
looked through our bags. We had some okay stuff -- beef jerky, crackers, mints,
candy, a pillow(courtesy of Kaitlynne), a blanket(from Katie), and a couple bucks.

"Well, we're screwed for now. Katie is right, though. We need names."
After deciding on names we pushed open the gates, ready to identify ourselves to
the two chunin ninjas waiting at a small booth.


"Who may you be?" one asked.


"I'M PING!" Kaitlynne shouted like an idiot. SMACK! Katie slapped her.


"Moron," Katie said. Kaitlynne laughed.


"Just kidding," she smiled. The two chunin looked at each other and gave
Kaitlynne a funny look. "I'm Chiharu," she smiled. Chiharu meant "One Thousand
Springs" which represented her love for clouds. Katie stepped forward next.


"I'm Miyuki," she smiled brightly. Miyuki meant "Beautiful Happiness" which also
reflected her personality as well. It was my turn. I stepped forward and put on
a strong face.


"My name is Arisu," I smirked. "Arisu" was the Japanese adaptation of "Alice". I
chose that, well, because we were sucked into some God forsaken rabbit hole into
Wonderland. The Chunin nodded. Arisu obviously was an uncommon name. It was Tia's turn.
She tried to sound mature but ended up being a bit quiet and shy.


"Uhh, name's Shiori," she smiled a bit too cheesily. "Shiori" meant bookmark or
guide, but Tia loved the name so she chose it happily. "I'm their squad leader."
The chunin guys looked suspicious.


"Where are you're village headbands?" he asked. ...Damn. The one question
we tried to avoid he asked. I had this covered, though.


"We're hoping to earn them. We're...not from here," I said, truthfully. He
nodded.


"I'll escort you to Hokage-Sama," he said, using an honorific. I forgot we had
to use them now. The scenery was beautiful--cherry blossom trees lined the path
on the way to the Hokage's. At last, we reached a large building. Sarutobi's
domain.

The chunin introduced us to another assistant who was our second excort.
Finally, he lead us to the Hokage's office.


"Hokage-sama," he began, "We have people who wish to serve as shinobi in our village." The Hokage put down
a book and stared at us. He searched my eyes like my crazy math teacher, Ms.
Murphy. I felt shivers crawl down my spine. He motioned us to introduce
ourselves. After introductions and explanations, he agreed to let us stay in the
village. We were assigned two connected apartments and were asked to join him at
the academy tomorrow to test our skills. That would determine if we got our
forehead-protecters or not. Sarutobi assigned us another escort and we were
shown to our new homes. Kaitlynne bodyslammed the bed causing it to squeak like
a dying mouse.


"Being a ninja is damn hard. All we do is run around houses!" I sighed.


"Just wait till we start training," Katie said, letting out a pissy huff. Tia
smiled into a mirror.


"I can't believe how I grew! It seems as though me and Kakashi were meant to
be!" Kakashi was the one she loved. It was funny watching her dance around. I
smiled inside. We were Leaf Village citizens. How freakin' awesome.


We had all fallen asleep quickly last night. The trip through the hole wore us
out more than we thought. I woke up and looked at the clock.


"OH, MY GOD, WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!!!!!" I screamed, immediately waking the
others. We had slept until noon! Our ninja-thingy test was in ten minutes! I
showered as fast as my legs could carry me and pulled myself together. Katie and
Kaitlynne tried their hardest to even move. At long last, we made it to the
academy. We ran inside and skidded to a halt. We saw three angry and impatient
faces. Some random Chunin, The Hokage, and Iruka all sat before us. Tia
shrugged.


"Sorry," was all we could say. The Hokage blinked and went through some papers.


"Shiori-San," he began, "As a squad leader you need to have powerful abilities
and wisdom." Tia nodded. "Please show us a couple jutsu or techniques," he
smiled. Tia smiled back, a bit nervously.


"Uhh...one moment please!" Tia wobbled back and pulled us into a huddle. "I forgot that we had to show
them ninja stuff!"


"Show them ninja stuff? So we could become ninjas?! NO WAY!" Katie
whispered loudly, sarcasm dripping from her mouth. Tia glared. I sighed
resentfully.


"Just try!" I said. Tia slunk out of the huddle and faced the Hokage.


"Okay...how about a shadow clone jutsu?" Tia asked. The three nodded
approvingly. Tia focused long and hard. "Shadow clone jutsu!" She shouted,
chakra focused. Abruptly, hundreds of clones appeared in the room, sitting at
the desks, leaning against the walls, acting casual. The Hokage went wide-eyed.


"Good. Any techniques of your own?" He smirked, licking his lips. In every
fangirl's life, she makes a fanfiction. Her first fanfiction. A fanfiction where
the character has an awesome ability. Tia had done so. She pulled out two fans
from her pocket. Where'd the fans come from?! Anyway, she twirled them
gracefully. She mumbled something under her breath. Then, with a great "Hyeahh!!" She swung the tiny fans,
completely destroying the walls in the room. Drywall crumbled pathetically into
rubble. People from classrooms next to us looked in, bewildered. Tia shrugged.


"Sorry!" she smiled. Iruka was especially surprised. He frowned like a pissy
girl, glaring at the walls he now had to fix. The Hokage then had the Chunin
fill out papers. Iruka handed Tia a blue leaf village headband. She wore it
proudly around her waist. He then called forth the rest of us. We had to make
three shadow clones each -- piece of cake, right?


It was! We each received headbands. Katie wore hers around her neck, Kaitlynne's
around her right arm, and mine on my forehead. I had always dreamed of this
moment. I felt like I could climb mountains! Like I could swim across seas! My
stomach growled. Like I could die of starvation in any second! I looked at
Katie. Before I could even say anything, she smiled a wide, evil grin and said,


"Ramen?" I smirked.


"Yes, ramen."


We approached the Ichiraku Ramen Shoppe when I spotted a familiar face--two, in
fact. Uncontrollably, I ran up and hugged one of them.


"Choji!" I smiled. He wore a funny looked and slurped up his ramen.


"Who are you? And why are you hugging me?!" he asked, obviously thinking
I was crazy. I had to whip up a quick excuse.


"Uhh...Someone told me your name and who you were...and you looked so nice and
huggable...I wanted to hug you...!" I beamed. He felt flattered, obviously.
Then, he took a happy slurp of his ramen. Naruto sat next to him, wearing a
funny look. I smiled brightly. Katie took a seat and ordered something that
smelled good. My stomach screamed at me. I ordered some kind of fancy thing. In
minutes it sat before me. I grabbed a pair of chopsticks. I was skilled with
chopsticks after lots of practice at Panda Express. I pulled them apart and
slowly reached out and took a chopstick-ful of ramen, letting it slide down my throat.


It was...


...IT WAS AMAZING!!!!


I ate the rest in seconds. Tia laughed and ordered Pork Miso. As she and
Kaitlynne finished eating and Tia was about to pay, a man behind us set down the
money on the counter.


"My treat, newcomers," he said. He wore a mask and had gray, gravity-defying
hair. It was Kakashi. Tia looked awestruck. Katie nudged her and she bowed
respectfully.


"Thank you very much!" Kakashi smiled.


"Sure," and with that, he walked away.


"You know Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked, bewildered. Apparently Kakashi had
never paid for his ramen ever before. We shrugged. Of course we knew him, but we
had to keep a low profile. Katie, who had always wanted to be Naruto's best
friend, began a conversation with him and they chit-chatted together while Tia
and Kaitlynne daydreamed. The sun was beginning to set, turning the sky into a
pink-orange haze. I took a deep breath and started to run. No one really noticed, but I just kept running. I ran into an immense grassy green field. I
was in a park. I ran to a willow tree and sat down and leaned against it.


I started to cry.


How were we supposed to get back? What about our families?! How much time is or
has passed? Thoughts twisted and turned in my brain. My head spun. It felt like
my lungs were being crushed. I couldn't breathe. I wanted to go home, even
though my dreams of visiting an imaginary world had finally come true. After
about fifteen pathetic minutes of pathetic crying, someone stood before me. I
looked up.


"Are you done, now?" a deep voice asked.

RESULTS:

I gasped quietly, staring into two dark eyes, realizing who it was. I barely
managed to squeeze out the two words that I did:


"Sasuke Uchiha?"




Here's a picture of Tia as a ninja!



http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/tia_is_a_ninja.jpg

CHAPTER THREE:

"Sasuke...Uchiha?" I mumbled. I staggered while trying to stand up, grabbing on
to the tree behind me. My legs quivered and my tears flowed uncontrollably. I
wiped them away and took a deep breath. Sasuke stared at me with a sinister
gaze. I blinked and tried to turn away but I simply couldn't. His eyes were like
black magnets. "Oh...uh...I'm sorry. You shouldn't have seen me...um, crying..."
I stammered and trailed off. Sasuke nodded and sighed, then turned to walk away.
"Wait!" I shouted. He stopped and opened his eyes.


"What?" he spat. I shuffled my feet nervously. A feeling bubbled up inside me.


"I LOVE YOU!!!" I screamed stupidly. He scoffed and started walking away.


"Dumb fangirl..." he muttered under his breath. My face turned red in an angry
kind of blushing.


"No...I HATE YOU!!" I shouted. I ran past him and pushed him to the ground. His
eyes went wide, obiviously surprised.


"Wait," he said this time, "Who are you?"


"SHUT UP!" I said and continued running.


First encounter with my favorite Naruto character -- FAILED!

"GYAHH!!!! I'M SO STUPIIIIID!!!" I screamed, shoving a pillow in my face. "HOW
COULD I HAVE SAID THOSE DUMB THINGS TO HIM?!?!?!" Tia covered her ear and
tsked.


"God, Rachael, you've said it a thousand times! At least turn down the volume!"
she scolded, sounding like my mom. I gave her an evil glare.


"Sorry, Sensei!" I sneered.


"SHUT UP I'M TRYING TO DAYDREAM!" Kaitlynne shouted, silencing our dumb
argument. We didn't talk much after that.


~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Katie had gone around town, looking for jobs so we could afford living as a
ninja. A ninja's stomach was never full, so we'd need money for food. A ninja was known for it's weapons, so we'd need money
for shuriken and crap. And, a ninja was known for it's sleak and stealthy
clothing -- and we were girls, so we kind of needed to shop sometimes.


"Hey! New girl!" a male voice shouted to Katie. She looked around for the
source. Out of the corner of her eye she could see a small white figure
approaching. "AKAMARU, DOWN BOY!" It was too late, though. Akamaru attacked
Katie, sending her to the ground. The bags of groceries she had been carrying
fell to the hard path and exploded into hopeless piles of lost and broken dreams
(that may be overexaggerated...). She sighed and scowled a bit at the mess.
"Sorry! Let me help you," the boy said, bending down and gathering up the
groceries. Katie smiled.


"Thank you," she said. The boy beamed.


"Sure. It was my fault in the first place...but anyway...yeah. Name's Kiba!" He
said, pulling off his hood to reveal a mop of brown hair. He stretched.


"I'm Ka-- uh, I mean Miyuki," Katie said, catching herself. A ninja was also
known for intelligence, so she kept on her toes. "Well, I have to get going. My
friends are probably dying from hunger and I'm the only one with food,
so...yeah. Guess I'll see you later...?" She asked hopefully. Kiba smiled.


"Sure," he said. "See ya!" He waved. Katie blushed all the way home, smiling
brightly until coming in to hear me whining, Tia dancing, and
Kaitlynne...sleeping. She made us dinner and we slept happily ever after...until
later that night...

Arisu . . . Arisu . . .


I awoke to the howling wind. I looked at the time -- three AM. I sat up as the
wind continued to whine. I looked left; right; up; down; but I couldn't seem to
find the source of the annoying sound. I tripped over everything as I tried to
find the sound.


"AAAH!" I screamed, falling flat on my face. I ran outside. The sound was not
coming from the inside, and I'd be safe from tripping over the others if I was outside.


"Hello?" I asked like one of those stupid chicks from the b-movie horror flicks.
I looked around and spotted a fire-escape ladder that led up to the roof. Being
curious AND stupid, I climbed up the ladder and found myself staring into the
mysterious eyes of the moon. It stared right through me, reading my soul. It was
beautiful. I took a seat at the edge of the roof and hummed a tune. The
moonlight was refreshing along with the soft, crisp breeze.


My dreams were ruined, however, after I heard leaves rustle behind me. I looked
at the trees that swayed gently. There weren't any leaves on the roof...


"Hello," a voice said out of no where.


"NYAAH!!" not expecting the voice, I screamed and started to fall of the roof. I
held on to the gutters and pulled myself up. I grunted, tired and weak. "Who's
there? Apologize!" I shouted at empty nothingness.


"Apologize? It's not my fault you're an idiot," the voice remarked. Okay, I
wanted to kill the guy, now. It was a male voice, deep and enticing. The man stepped forward.
The wind blew hard and leaves encircled his face. One look at his cloak and face
and I knew it could only be one man...


Itachi Uchiha.


At this point I was fully ready to rip him to shreds, being as he had hurt
Sasuke and the whole clan. Rachael knew that. Arisu didn't. I stood up and
brushed off my clothes. I began to shiver, though. The wind was getting colder
and I was only wearing a tank top and spandex shorts.


"W-who are you?" I asked, acting everything out so smoothly. Itachi saw through
that, scrutinizing every breath and step I took.


"You'll know soon enough..." Hmmm, maybe he didn't know... "But I can tell you
one thing," I took a cautious step. "Don't associate with my brother."
And in a blow of the wind and rustle of the leaves, he was gone.

RESULTS:

I sighed and climbed down the ladder, back into the apartment and lay down in my
bed. Stupid Itachi. Stupid stupid! I would SO associate with Sasuke! Well, until I found a way to talk to him again
after the dumb things I said. I rolled over on my side and closed my eyes, ready
for morning to come.


"Oh, my God, Rachael!" Katie shouted in my face. I looked outside and spotted
the rising sun. "We have to go training!" Katie wore a worried look. I sat up.


"Okay, chill, just gimme a minute..." I mumbled, trying to stand up.

"No! You don't understand! We can't find Kaitlynne!" Katie shouted. I bolted up
and looked at the back door. It was open.

Kaitlynne was gone.



CHAPTER FOUR!!!

"Ma'am," Kaitlynne started. A woman, who was in charge of the booth Kaitlynne
was at, turned to face her, a grin on her face, obviously hoping that Kaitlynne
might buy something. "Do you know where I can find a good place to look at the
clouds?" Her smile faded into a puzzled look.


"Clouds...?" she began, putting a finger to her mouth in thought. "Um, I guess
you could try the roof of that building over there," she pointed past smaller
structures and to an immense gray building that towered over all the others,
putting them to shame. "It's one of the tallest buildings here." Kaitlynne
nodded.


"Thanks," was all Kaitlynne bothered to say. The woman stifled a laugh as
Kaitlynne began to skip away. She took a deep breath... She was a ninja now,
right? She'd be able to hop on the roofs using chakra...right?! She
braced herself as she focused, an intense aura building around her. She moved
into a ready stance and just as she was about to jump--


"KAAAITLYNNEE!!!" Kaitlynne fell flat onto her face. Villagers looked at her curiously. "Uhh, I
mean, CHIHARU!!!!!" Tia said, trying to save herself. The villagers were still
staring. Tia grabbed Kaitlynne by her headband around her neck. "Listen you! We
have to train, and you can't go running off looking at your stupid clouds!" Tia
scolded. Passerby began to inch away, then hurry away from us. Tension hung in
the air.


"But I don't want to!" Kaitlynne whined. "I don't want to work!"


"Lazy," Katie murmured. I nudged her shoulder. Tia pulled Kaitlynne so that
their faces were but inches apart.


"Listen Kaitlynne, I really don't want to--"


"Is this the source of the racket? God, how troublesome." Kaitlynne's eyes lit
up, recognizing that phrase. She and Tia turned their heads and stared into the
eyes of Asuma Sarutobi, Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi, and of course, the one and
only genius Shikamaru Nara. Kaitlynne sighed dreamily and straightened up, as
the rest of us did. Mine and Choji's eyes met, and we blushed. Asuma studied our faces. He looked
at Tia and smiled approvingly.


"So," he started, cigarette twitching in the corner of his mouth. "You the new
squad? Cell 14, right?" Tia nodded. "I'm Asuma, and these are my students, Ino,
Shikamaru, and Choji," he pointed them out. Tia did the same with herself and
us. I held my breath. Smoking, to me, was the worst thing...like...EVAR. I
started coughing hard, then wheezing. I was hacking up phlem by now.


"OH, GAWD, SMOKING IS SOOO GROSS!" I shouted above my coughs, hacks, and
wheezes. Tia backslapped me and I stopped. Asuma frowned.


"Brat," he spat.


"SUICIDAL MANIAC! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL YOURSELF?!?!" I quipped at the
top of my voice. Tia clasped her hand over my mouth and muffled my comebacks.
Choji giggled. Asuma flashed him a vehement look and Choji quickly stuck his
hand into his bag of chips and shoved them into his mouth innocently. Ino
smirked. I'm sure she understood how I felt about smoking, being as she was with Asuma
waaay more then me. HA!


"Hey," Kaitlynne said, directing it at Shikamaru. He raised an eyebrow.


"Yeah..." Jerk! I thought to myself. Kaitlynne sighed. Tia released me
immediately after I licked her hand. I dashed over to Kaitlynne and in her ear I
whispered,

"Shika's an ass -- it'll take him a while before he opens up to you!" Kaitlynne
nodded, a bit depressed. Shikamaru looked curious. I smiled. "You don't get to
know!" I stuck my tongue out at him. He huffed. Katie really had nothing to say.
She just watched all of us talk. She hated Ino... like many others, but she
really had no reason. Katie did. Miyuki didn't.

"Alright," Tia started. "Looks like we'll be on our way. Nice meeting you!" she
smiled sincerely. Asuma smirked. He had a little crush on her! He gestured for
Tia to come closer. She walked over and leaned her head in.

"You might want to get some control over that one..." he pointed at me, trailing off. Tia laughed.

"I'm not sure that's possible!" They chuckled.


"Sensei?" Katie started. Tia looked up. "Can we go train, now, please?"
she hinted. Asuma nodded his head in approval at Katie -- a somewhat ideal
student. After saying our goodbyes we went our separate ways. Time for training.


Oh Joy.


We all made our way over to some training grounds out in the woods near the
academy. There were lots of vulnerable trees and logs that would be our targets.


We trained for nearly three and a half hours, focusing on mostly basic things
like substitutions along with accuracy, power, and agility. I noticed things
about each and everyone...


Firstly, Katie was best with weapons. She had a ton of kunai, shuriken, senbon,
and sai knives stored away in her pouches. She even had this freakin' awesome
power where the tools would come back into her hands... as if there were magnets
in them! She was extremely accurate and swift with them. Better than Tenten, a.k.a., Katie
was going to get more screentime than Tenten. But didn't everyone get more
screentime than Tenten?


Eh heh...anyway...


Kaitlynne was next. She was awesome with her taijutsu -- she was crazy fast, and
she hardly had to lift a finger to be capable of her agility. She was so fast
that when she constantly moved side to side she'd disappear! I remember joking
with her about getting weights to put on. She answered with this: "WEIGHTS?
Then I'd have to work!"


Then there was Tia. Tia had totally sweet ninjutsu powers, like the one with the
fans she created back when we were at the academy, applying to be ninjas. She
had all sorts of tricks up her sleeves, along with being able to do a shadow
clone and substitution at the same time. She also mentioned something
about developing a shapeshifting jutsu of some sort...


Then there was me. I had always imagined myself to be good at genjutsu. And I was! I accidentally killed a squirrel trying it out, but
that was okay, because I hated squirrels. The deal was that I possessed an eye
thingy. Like...Doujutsu. I was able to manipulate and control things against
their will. It was funky. I hadn't found a mirror to see what my eye jutsu thing
looked like, but Katie mentioned I had it in one eye only.


We sat down and cooled off under the shade of a tree. It was about noon. We
drank a ton of water and nibbled on some sandwiches prepared by moi. I
made sure to cut the crusts off of all of them, which Katie whined about later.


After we were done eating, we chit-chatted until hearing voiced in the distant.
Katie stood up first, and we copied, all going to find the source of the voices.


"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" an annoying voice shrieked. It was Naruto's squad,
training. I jumped up and down.


"Oh, oh!" I shouted. The others stared. "I know what episode this is! This is
bell one!" Kaitlynne chuckled.


"You mean the one where Tia's boyfriend shoves his perverted fingers up Naruto's
ass?" Tia pinched her forehead in disgust and sighed.


"He does one perverted thing and you never let me forget it!"


"One?! What about his books?! And--"


"AHEM!" I coughed. We were silent as we watched from the bushes and trees. By
now, Naruto had been pulled up by the rope, hanging from the tree. We laughed,
even Katie. Then it was Sasuke's turn. I examined all his intricate movements
and hand signs. I sighed, regretting all the stupid things I said to him. He
moved his hands again. FWOOOM! A massive gust of fire blew everywhere. I
wished Kakashi would've been burned, but he was obviously too cool for that.
Then, he pulled an Earth-Style and Sasuke got pulled underground until he was
just a head. Kaitlynne, Katie, and Tia laughed uncontrollably, not even noticing
that I had jumped out from behind the bushes. I dashed over to Sasuke. Observing
him. He frowned, remembering me, but he was still curious -- a thousand questions,
I'm sure.


"'Sup?" I asked.


"...Sup..." he looked away.


"Need some help?" I asked, taunting him a bit, knowing that he didn't want me
dripping over him like syrup. I imagined him nodding with puppy dog eyes... a
girl could dream, right?


"What do you think?" he scoffed. I frowned at his tone of voice. I wondered if
the others were watching us.


"I think I'm going to leave you here. You're a brat, and you think you know
everything. Kakashi will tell you that later, so you don't really need to hear
from me," I winced at myself for being so rude, but this was the only way he'd
associate with me again. I also felt bad for telling him what Kakashi was going
to say. He gritted his teeth and growled almost. "See ya," I said. Time to pull
an awesome ninja move... I disappeared into thin air as a dramatic exit, leaving
but one item behind -- a single black rose. I was back with Katie and the others. They probably didn't hear me, but their mouths were wide
in awe anyway.


"What if you somehow affected the real episode?!" Katie hissed. I
shrugged.


"I think Naruto needed a bit of a Shojo touch!" I said, and with that, we headed
home.


After we got home, I examined my Doujutsu eye thing. It wasn't anything like the
Sharingan or Byakugan. It turned my whole eye the color -- pupil and iris. It
was a gray-blue, dulled almost, as if I were blind. Like this, for all you
visual people:


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/eye_color.jpg


It was weird. It felt normal, I guess. Whatever normal is. So to say that it
never inflicted pain or anything when I used it.


But now, we were all bored. Katie was throwing a kunai knife on the ground, then
using her magnetic hands to pull it back over and over again. Kaitlynne was
sprawled out on the ground looking out the back door at the drifting clouds. Tia was on one of the beds, blowing a
feather into the air before it floated back down. I was pacing around the room.
Inside my head, thoughts twisted around like a tornado.


Step one towards making Sasuke love me: [Playing hard to get] CHECK! Next
step: Waiting for him to ask me to fight. Knowing Sasuke he'll ask me for
sure... I hope he didn't keep the rose or anything... that'd be freaky. He
probably left it alone... or stepped on it... yeah... maybe that...


"YES!" I was ripped from my trance by the chiming voices of Katie and Kaitlynne.
The clouds outside had darkened and the rain began to drizzle down. I sighed.
Oh, how I hated the rain. Katie and Kaitlynne loved it.


"Someone must've died here in Naruto-Land," Tia added jokingly. "Aww... I feel
bad for them. It's a Monday." That did sound bad. I frowned at the
thought.



RESULTS:

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down... I thought to myself. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, a figure
appeared behind me, putting a kunai knife to my throat. I gasped, unable to
breathe. Then, with an evil laugh, they whispered two words in my ear,


"Time's up."


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/newrule.gif


Since I was lazy and skipped out on a picture on the last chapter, here's a
picture of Katie AND Kaitlynne!



Katie:


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/Katie_NinjaProfile.jpg


Kaitlynne:


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/Kaitlynne_NinjaProfile.jp
g



I also wanted to add this, because I felt it was necessary:


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/imaninja.jpg"





CHAPTER FIVE!:

I could hear the blood pounding in my ears, and feel my heart leaping out of my chest. My breaths were
short and shallow. I tried to turn to see the face of my attacker, but the
slightest movement would risk the slicing and dicing of my neck. Where were
Katie, Kaitlynne, and Tia? Why weren't they helping me? The attacker's voice
began an evil cackle, then a more whole-hearted laugh. I felt perplexed. It
wasn't a man...


"Oh, god, Rachael, you're so gullible!" she laughed, releasing me from her grip
and putting the kunai away.


"TIA, I HATE YOU!" I said, running into the closet dramatically. I could hear
their laughs, then, silence.

After about five minutes, and I was sure they felt guilty, I stood up and opened
the closet door. I looked left. Right. Up. Down. No sign of the dorks...


BAM!


"OOF!" I said, falling onto the ground after being hit with a pillow. Kaitlynne
walked up to me with a stupid grin on her face.


"LOL Rachael, you came outta the closet!" That comment caused me to attempt to smack the perversity out of
her with the pillow. After about thirty seconds of that, Tia came up and swiped
away the pillow, a surprisingly serious look on her face. She pulled the two of
us by the collars, our feet dangling a foot above the ground. I giggled
uncontrollably while she threw us down onto the bed. Kaitlynne and I tried to
stop laughing under her gaze, but it was simply impossible.


"Alright, if you idiots are done, we have a mission," she said in a sarcastic
and somewhat motherly tone.


"MISSSSIIIOOOOOON!!!!!" A voice screamed from the kitchen. Katie darted into the
room and shook with either ecstasy or a sugar rush. I raised an eyebrow,
silently asking her to elaborate. "Well," she began, "Naruto's squad went on
their mission as well--to the Land of Waves. And after that... is the Chunin
exams!" She bounced again. We were still out of the loop. "WHICH MEANS WE'LL GET
TO MEET GAARA!" she beamed. We all nodded in understanding unison. Gaara was Katie's true love. >.<


"He's going to hate you," Kaitlynne taunted. "He's going to hate everybody."
Katie sighed, wanting the truth to be untrue. Eventually though--Gaara was
supposed to learn how to love.


"Alright, dorks," Tia said, laughing a bit, "Let's go on a mission."

The sun was shining with a gentle breeze blowing through the hustling and
bustling village. Cumulus clouds were fluffy and white above us in the
translucent blue sky. People everywhere were buying, selling, talking, yelling,
walking, running, dancing, EVERYTHINGING. It made me laugh almost. It was
so loud and strange, and yet it was normal and familiar. I smiled and inhaled
the smell of ramen and other oriental foods, somewhat missing breathing in the
smell of funnel cakes, hamburgers, and corn dogs. Like at a carnival.


That's what it was like! The village was a carnival.


That brought back memories...


"Rachael! Hurry!" I turned at the sound of my name. Katie was waving at me from behind a railing. A shortening line
was in front of her. I smiled brightly and stepped out of the line for soda and
ran over to her, hopping the small fence. I wasn't sure what the ride was, but I
was game for anything. People left out an exit next to us, smiling and cheering
things like, "Dude, that was so awesome," and "LET'S GO AGAIN, LET'S
GO AGAIN!"


I was burning with curiosity by now. A group in front of us flooded into the
loading room. It was our turn, and with a sharp pang of realization and
excitement, I knew what it was.


We were going on a roller coaster.


"Katie, you have the BEST taste in rides!" I beamed. She returned the grin as we
boarded on, taking a seat in the very front. I buckled up, and we pulled down
the safety bar. Instructions and rules echoed on a CD that's been played at
least a thousand times. With a quick safety inspection by the worker girl and
click of the safety bars locking into place. The roller coaster began to chug-a-chug, right on it's way. Then came the
hill. The coaster started it's climb. Ecstasy coursed through my veins. Oh
yeah, it's party time. We reached the top. Standing still for a mere minute,
then dropping at an incredible speed. Stomach in my throat and adrenaline
shooting into my brain, I screamed and threw my hands up high, taking in the
joyous freedom of the roller coaster.


My mouth was drying fast with ecstatic screams. Katie was next to me, doing the
exact same thing. After what seemed like only seconds, the coaster came to a
halt as dizzied passengers exited, grinning and giving their opinions on the
ride. We were having fun already, and we knew there was more to come as soon as
we spotted Tia and Kaitlynne over at the tilt-a-whirl...


I was so absorbed in my memories I hadn't noticed that we arrived at the
Mission-assigning place. Was there even a name for it? My mind soon strayed from
the thought as soon as we were face-to-face with the Hokage. Ever folding skin hung loosely from his face. He smiled,
everything wrinkled.


"Ah, my newest team. I have quite the mission for you," he grinned, revealing
teeth that were still, surprisingly, present. Katie bounced in place.


"DO WE GET TO FIND CATS FOR OLD LADIES!?" she shouted, a little TOO excited. The
Hokage laughed. It shuddered through his ribs and stomach.


"No, Miyuki-San. I've a C mission for you. I'd like to test your skills as a
ninja, along with those of your comrades. And the leadership of Shiori-San,"
Saddened, Katie bowed her head, sulking. Tia smiled at his comment. "Well? What
are you waiting for? Come fetch the scroll!" he said, shaking a rolled up piece
of paper at us. Tia stepped forward and received the details of the mission.


"An escort? PSH, sooo easy!" I said, flexing my "muscles". Kaitlynne smacked me.
After asking the Hokage a few more questions, we finished and were ready to go.
All we needed to do was meet the person we were to escort. The Hokage told us to meet them downstairs. I ran down
first, being as, that's what I do. Katie, Kaitlynne, and Tia all respectively
followed next. They joined me in jaw-dropping awe.


Before us stood something that resembled a greek god. Long white hair, the color
of starlight, tumbled gracefully to his waist, a loose white shirt covering an
obvious six pack. Tailored black pants showed off his long, slim legs. He looked
as if he were striking a pose for a hidden camera, and I had to wonder if he was
a model or something. His best feature were his eyes, though. A translucent,
mesmerizing amethyst.


"Hiiiii..." I said, trying not to drool. The boy--MAN,--Walked over and
observed me, head to toe. He smirked.


"How old are you?" my insides were screaming with joy. OMG OMG OMG.... HOT
MAN IS TALKING TO ME!! Alright... calm... answer him, now... with dignity!


"Um, fourteen," I said, resenting the um. He smiled, revealing perfectly straight teeth, bright white. He sat up straight an hmmmmmed.


"I'll keep that in mind," I shivered with curiosity and the feeling of romance.
Just the sound of his deep, matured voice made me feel fuzzy. He was tall,
too--probably Tia's height. "So. It's nice to meet my escorts,"


"We get to ESCORT you!?" Katie blurted, obviously sharing the same
feeling for him as me. He nodded.


"Name's Kiyoshi. Pleasure meeting you all," he took a long, perfect finger and
tickled my chin. I was swooning putty in his hands. "Ready to leave?" he asked.


RESULTS:



"YES!" Tia said. "Where are we going? I forgot..." she laughed slightly,
scratching her head innocently. Kiyoshi smiled.


"Silly," he started, turning around and walking towards the door. "We're off to
Oto. The sound village."


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/newrule.gif



Here's a picture of Ninja Rachael!


http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k283/0mysasuke0/Ninja_Rachael.jpg





CHAPTER SIX (final chapter before this story died)---Lol, this was unpublished and unfinished at the time--and in fact, it still is unfinished.

"...Oto?" I frowned. Memories that were not my own flowed into my mind.
Orochimaru...


"Squad Meeting! NOW!" Kaitlynne said matter-of-factly. We huddled together
secretively. "Alright. Pretty boy here doesn't sit too well with me." We looked
at Kiyoshi, who smiled innocently. Kaitlynne continued. "And Oto? Yeah... He's
probably one of Orochimaru's sex pets." I slapped Kaitlynne upside the head.


"Pervert!"


"I highly doubt that he's a..." Katie gulped. "'Sex pet,' Kaitlynne." Tia
nodded, silently agreeing. Kaitlynne shook her head profusely, sticking with her
prediction. She leaned closer. Directing the comment at me, she whispered,


"I bet he's not even a virgin!" I shivered and shook perverse thoughts
out of my head. Kaitlynne giggled menacingly. She was victorious.


"So?!" I struggled to think of a comeback. Kaitlynne snickered as we broke up
the huddle. Kiyoshi was looking out the window thoughtfully. He raked through
his long hair. It sparkled in the soft light. I bet it smells good... I
thought to myself. I blushed when he looked at me. Had I been staring?


"Alright," Tia stepped forward, tightening her village headband. "The Hokage
said to leave as soon as possible, so we'll just stop at our apartment to pick
up some extra clothes and provisions. Any objections?" It was silent. "Alright
then. Kiyoshi, you can come with us and wait there, then we'll leave." and so
with a quick nod from Kiyoshi, we were off.

OMFG YOU GUYS!!! I'm very happy right now! I posted up a chapter for a BRAND NEW story!! I have no idea if I'll finish it or not, but we'll see how it goes and how much I like it! It's only just begun, so there's not much of a plot yet, but there shall be!


There will also be romance...

Suspense!!!!

ACTION!!!

Adventure!!

Horror......?!?!

Sacrilige! (lol maybe)

AND POCKY! LOTS AND LOTS OF POCKY!!!!


YAY EXCLAMATION POINTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm likin' it so far, and it's not boring like my death note story, and there's not too much happening at once like my Naruto story! Please enjoy it, Tia, Katie and Kaitlynne!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

VISIT THIS LINK FOR WHAT SHOULD BE A JOURNAL POST:

http://www.quizilla.com/stories/7904079/kimihana-english-lyrics-by-me

Don't ever let go of my hand, don't ever let go,
Because I will always be next to you!
No matter where you are right now, just smile, smile!
And we can watch the flowers in full bloom.

This morning I found a flower
That had bloomed for the very first time.
It held closely but a single thorn
That could protect its fragile life in prime. (Lame line, I know. But it rhymed... D:)

A feeling of pain begins to envelop my heart
But I know the growing warmth of your embrace will bring me back to where I can restart!

I only want to see you now, I want to see you;
I am forever yours but if we ever get lonely
We can holds hands until the loneliness fades away from here.

So don't ever let go of my hand, don't ever let go,
Because I will always be next to you!

Well. School IS tomorrow. As clearly expressed by Tia. *Sigh* GOODBYE SUMMER! IT'S BEEN REAL!!!

Here are some awesome videos for you.

Barack Roll:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65I0HNvTDH4

Momma's Boy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lmr3MZx1GKw&fmt=18

The Taco... commonly referred to as "God's given grace to mankind", or "The best greasy food product ever", or even "The pinnacle of Tex-Mex foods". Whatever the Taco may be called, it is always delicious and satisfying. However, there is one person the Taco cannot satisfy--and it's not the people who have to bring Pepto Bismol with them when they eat out at Taco Bell. It is a young child of merely fourteen years. And I'm sure your asking yourself this moment: "What kind of idiot hates Tacos?"

The Taco... commonly referred to as "God's given grace to mankind", or "The best greasy food product ever", or even "The Tex-Mex food of Tex-Mex foods". Whatever the Taco may be called, it is always delicious and satisfying. However, there is one person the Taco cannot satisfy--and it's not the people who have to bring Pepto Bismol with them when they eat out at Taco Bell. It is a young child of merely fourteen years. And I'm sure your asking yourself this moment: "What kind of idiot hates Tacos?"

Let's see... it's been about two months since I last updated it. It was boring, too. I think both you and I agree that it's DEAD. I'm putting all the chapters here like my Jump! story.

And look!!! A BONUS~~!!!
A tiny piece of the forever unfinished chapter 5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chapter One

I always wanted to be a Forensic Anthropologist. I found dead bodies and skeletons extremely intriguing and interesting, as well as the fact that death was a common topic nowadays, considering all the ways people could and have died. The human body is so fascinating, so captivating, that I’d become so absorbed in my work as an interning cop that I forget that I’m there for justice, rather than the crime scene. My father, Chief Jeff Howard of the New York Police Department, allows me to tag along while he shows me the ropes of being a police officer. He’s made sure that I’ve been taught, trained, and prepared well. He took me through the pepper spray immunization thing (which was hell) along with dangerous hot pursuits, booking meth addicts, and much more. My uncle is a SWAT team member, and my mother, Lynn Howard, is a highly respected court judge that books as many criminals as possible. She always talks about how hard it is, since she wants to book everyone but has to consider jail space and level of the crime. I enjoy and have always been surrounded by those who respect and are all about justice. I seem to be the only one in the family that likes to observe the aftermath of crimes committed. If I could, I’d be a part of the FBI or CIA. Instead, I’ve found myself in the busy streets of the Kanto Region of Japan to become a member of the NPA, the Japanese equivalent of the FBI.

Looking around I observed tiny cafes and convenience stores scattered about. I was in the middle of a fairly large street that resembled Time’s Square back home with a gigantic screen on one of the buildings. One of the News Channels was on, tiny ticker tape running by quickly on the top and bottom of the screen, streamed with white kanji in a most generic font. I was pretty fluent in Japanese being as I was a hardcore manga and anime fan. I had settled in to a small, comfy apartment the previous day, and today was the day for exploring. After adjusting my purse strap that was swung over my shoulder, I began walking, avoiding the occasional stare or glare from passerby.

I decided to stop into one of the convenience stores and pick up a newspaper along with an iced mocha latte for a second wind. Japan was a big place, and I needed constant fuel. The cashier was an old fragile woman, but she was much nicer than some of the other natives I had ran into earlier. Japan consists of mostly nice people, but there are always a few stereotypical ones who like to hate all Americans because we’re fat, rich, and dirty. Not everyone is, really—just an increasing percentage. I can understand their feelings, but they should probably loosen up a little.

So after taking a break to drink my coffee and read the paper, I came across a frantic woman, tears streaming down her face. I decided to investigate—curiosity was one of my major weaknesses.

“Ma’am,” I said in Japanese, gently touching her shoulder, “is everything alright?” I stared in to dark, panicked eyes, which could make anyone’s heart feel heavier.

“I-I,” she stammered, swallowing and trying to calm herself, “I can’t find my daughter! One moment she was talking to me and smiling, the other she was gone! I’ve been looking everywhere, and I, I, I,--” I stopped her as she began to hyperventilate. Curious stares from people all around were on me, and I had only one choice.

“Ma’am, how old is your daughter?” I started to investigate. She wiped away tears and explained that her daughter was about seventeen, young but mature, who loved life and respected her friends and family. A good student, loyal daughter and friend, and a good person in general. She also made sure to add that she was extremely attractive, with soft facial features, long ink black hair, and rare blue eyes. “Please stay here,” I asked, beginning to walk away. The woman had said that they were walking through the park, heading towards the main street. I walked down a back alleyway, dark and wet, decorated with various garbage cans and recycling bins.

“No, please!” a tiny voice cried. This seemed promising, so I did a roundabout to the next alley over—that of which was where a man had pinned a young girl against a wall. She looked over to me at the sound of my footsteps, wet, desperate blue eyes screaming for help. I knew I wouldn’t be able to fight off her assaulter—I wasn’t as strong as my father or mother, who had taken Tae Kwon Do classes for twelve years each. My mistake to turn said lessons away. I pulled a can of pepper spray from my purse and swiftly walked over to the criminal, cheesy ski mask included, and raised the can. I didn’t notice the gun he had in his hand. I raised a brave hand and tapped his shoulder. He turned and not-so-gladly met my can of pepper spray. I held on to the nozzle, spraying as much as possible and avoiding the girl. The man hunched over in pain, his eyes watering like a sprinkler, nose running like a faucet. While he wailed in pain, I found a rusty crowbar on the ground next to a garbage can. The girl’s eyes widened as I approached her assaulter and swung the crowbar into the back of his head. He froze and then fell to the ground, convulsing in throbbing pain. The impact of the bar to his head vibrated in my arms, sending surges of tingling numbness through each of them. I pulled a pair of handcuffs from my purse and secured the criminal, proud of myself. I towered above him, shaking.

“A-are you okay?” I asked the girl, outstretching a hand for her to hold. She nodded weakly, holding her shirt where the man had ripped it open. I held her for a moment, like a friend would to another, just to comfort her. Complete strangers, and yet here we were. I pulled out my cell phone, calling 110, the correspondent to 911, and explained our location and the crime. They arrived shortly, the mother of the girl included. Reunited, they hugged and cried.

“Miss,” she said, “thank you so much.” I gave a quick nod and smile. I do what I do. I’m no superhero, but I do enjoy serving up justice for the locals, no matter what continent I’m on. “Please, if I may ask, what is your name?” she added quietly. I smiled.

“My name is Kylee,” I answered honestly. With a last nod, I walked away, never to see them again but knowing that the memory of them would stay with me forever.

Later that night after arriving home to my small apartment, I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling, awaiting slumber to find me. There were no patterns to follow, which made me even more irritated. Whenever I was angry or bothered, I couldn’t sleep—one of my curses. Or maybe a gift…? Whatever it was, sleep finally found me and took me into a restless, dreamless slumber.

Chapter Two:

“Watari,” a man began to ask, reaching for a piece of cake on the coffee table. “Please see what you can find on this Kylee girl…” he trailed, taking another bite.

“Yes, sir,” the old man replied, flipping through some papers and opening a cell phone. “Anything else…?” it was silent. “May I ask why you’d like to know, sir?” there was a long pause.

“She intrigues me.”

The next day began with a bang--literally. The volume on my alarm was turned up so loud that when it went off I woke up immediately, falling out of the American-style bed and onto the cold, hard floor. Not the best way to wake up. I sighed and heaved myself up off of the floor and into the small accompanying kitchen, where I placed two pieces of toast in the toaster and poured myself a glass of orange juice. Exactly four ice cubes floated gently in the juice, each with an orange tinge to it. I took another sip, savoring the fresh, orangey taste. It reminded me of Florida—I had once gone on a business trip with my uncle in Miami, where we later we headed over to Orlando along with all those fun theme parks—but I’ll always remember that my favorite part was drinking the orange juice at the hotels for breakfast before we headed out.

After the toast popped, was lightly buttered, then eaten by me, I sat for a moment in front of the window, holding a cup of iced coffee, looking out into the city. Japan was nice and clean, but I had to admit that I missed my hometown. They were a lot alike, Japan and New York. Except for all the aggravated plumbers and beggars. Other than that, the fact that they were both extremely busy, loud, colorful, they were both fairly similar.

Once my coffee was gone, I headed to the bathroom for a shower. Today, I would apply to become a police officer of Japan. I couldn’t wait—although I wasn’t very nervous, things as important as this could be nerve racking to anyone.

Getting dressed followed showering, which meant that I’d have to look good, formal, and smart, but still have my own look to it. I wanted to give them a good impression, but I also wanted to make an impact on them with the time I had—something of meaning that I could leave with them.

…

Oh well. I’d just have to wait and see what happens. So after getting dressed and applying my make-up I left my apartment hoping for the best and expecting the worse. I just prayed that it wouldn’t turn out like that in the long run.

I arrived at the office of the NPA casually, hoping I didn’t look too arrogant or too meek. There were a few faces glued to me, probably because I was American. It didn’t bother me as much as the chance of getting into the department did. I so hoped that I would make it. I’ve worked so hard throughout all my years in school along with my internship with my dad. Even in summer and part-time jobs I’ve gotten awards for hard work. I can admit that I am a bit of an overachiever. But I’ve even been on jury duty! If that doesn’t sound good enough, then I’d just say to them that I’d be up to anything as long as it meant getting into the NPA. That’s how determined I was.

“Miss…?” a Japanese man began to ask.

“Oh, it’s Kylee,” I told him. He nodded and filed through some papers and checked his watch.

“They’ll see you now,” he said with a nod and a smile. “Good luck.” I returned the nod and swiftly walked into a conference room. There was a single table in the middle of the room, which was lit by a single lamp on the table with no windows. It felt like one of those interrogation rooms that I’d always see on TV. A man with a sharp suit, square mustache, and taut line for a mouth stood up and shook my hand, introducing himself as the police chief, Mr. Soichiro Yagami, gesturing for me to take a seat. On either side of him were two empty chairs and one bodyguard in the each of the surrounding corners. I could feel their stares bore onto me, which just added to the tension of my current situation. Chief Yagami flipped through some papers on the table, adjusting his glasses. I could already guess the kinds of questions he was going to ask me. I needed no knowledge of Japanese history or culture, rather the laws and possibly recent cases in Japan. Maybe he’d ask me about involvement in the force back in New York, or any other kinds of cases I’ve practiced, including my education experience—scholarships, classes, my majors in high school and college.. I took a deep breath, and he gave me a quick smile, assuring me that everything would be okay.

“Miss Kylee,” he began, making eye contact with me, “First and foremost, I would like to ask you the most important question throughout this entire exam,” I nodded, preparing myself. “Why would you like to become a police officer?” I relaxed. I could answer this.

“That’s easy, Chief Yagami,” I said, trying hard not to sound cocky, even though I knew this is what would get me in. “Ever since I was little I’ve wanted to be a policewoman or FBI agent. Growing up, I was, and have always been, surrounded by people who want to make the world a better place. All I’ve ever wanted to do is enforce the law and bring justice to those that need it, and to protect the citizens of not only my country, but the world.” The chief nodded, impressed. It sounded too cheesy, I thought, scowling. But, it was the truth, and no matter how corny the truth may be, the truth must be spoken.

He wrote down some notes and checked some boxes then went back to quizzing me on knowledge of the law of not only Japan, but America, Canada, China, Russia, and Germany. Tiny tidbits from each country’s law, but even so I regretted not paying attention in my world history class. When the test was over, I knew I had missed a few, but not enough to put me out of business. The chief stood up, dismissing me.

“We’ll look over your answers again and give you an answer by tomorrow,” he explained as I walked out the door. “And Miss Kylee,” he added. I stopped and turned around.

“Yes?” I asked. He stared into my eyes for a moment, looking for a hint of any lie, any injustice I might have committed within not only the previous situation, but my entire life. I was a pretty pure, innocent child. I was raised well—only because of my parents, though, who of which receive all the credit.

“…Nothing,” he said. I could’ve sworn I saw him smile, but I dismissed the thought and took my leave, walking down the sidewalk with a proud grin on my face.

Chapter Three

Sometimes I wonder how long Twinkies are supposed to last.

So do I dare question how long Japanese Twinkies last…?

The world may never know.

I put the Twinkie back in its place on the shelf at one of the local convenience stores, looking for the necessary groceries and what not. Just as I was about to take a half carton of milk from the refrigerator, my phone began to ring, quite loudly, I may add. I flipped it open, forgetting to check the caller ID.

“Hello?” I said in English by force of habit and then repeated it in Japanese for good measure.

“Kylee?” a synthesized voice asked. It was layered and masked several times, making it impossible to make out the original voice behind it.

“Um, may I ask who is calling?” I asked, shifting my position. The voice was emotionless when it spoke, which was slightly unnerving.

“You don’t know who I am, but I do believe that we’ll be meeting very soon,” I didn’t know whether to think this was a good or bad thing that someone knew who I was, along with my phone number and god knows what else. “I’d like to tell you now that you have been approved to become a member of the NPA, not only for your intelligence and wit, but also because I put in a good word for you as well—even so, without that you most likely would have made it in anyway…” he trailed off. I nodded, forgetting that he couldn’t see me, but then doubted him. How was I supposed to believe this guy? He’s using a synthetic voice. Although the sound of being a part of the NPA made me ecstatic, I was still unconvinced.

“How do I know that I can trust you?” I asked, suspicious.

“I simply told them who I was.”

“…And you are…?”

“I am L.” I paused for a moment. Of course I knew who L was—it would be unforgivable if I had not. L was one of the most famous detectives in the world. He never showed his face, never revealed his real name. Unless his real name was actually “L”. Why would any parent give their son a letter for a name…? That aside—I was talking to the real L. I didn’t have to ask any more questions. I could hear it in his synthesized voice—he wasn’t one to lie, and anyone who pretended to be L… well, let’s just say they regretted it. I leaned against the fridge, intent on hearing him out.

“Why me?” was all I managed. I was curious about it, and I felt that it would nag me forever unless he was going to tell me. “What makes me different from all the others? There are tons of other detectives and police officers out there who deserve more recognition than I. Don’t you think so?” L took a deep breath.

“If you say so. That may be true to you, but I believe that your sense of justice is stronger than many I’ve met, which may include myself. I can’t say anything for sure, but I feel that there is something special about you, Kylee, some sort of untapped ability. You could be the key to something in the future, and what that may be, neither of us could ever know at this point. I look forward to meeting you, but until then, I bid you adieu.” A click was heard at the other end of the line before I could even think of a reply. I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly, taking the milk carton from the fridge and taking it and my other provisions to the cashier. She handed the plastic bag to me in exchange for the money I owed. The current time was nearly noon—yesterday was when I had gone in for my interview for the NPA.

Brrring! My phone chimed and vibrated in my pocket, the volume seeming lower outside in the loud streets.

“Hello?” I said in English after checking the caller ID.

“Happy Thursday, honey!” a voice sang.

It was my mom.

“Um, hi mom. And yes, it is Thursday here in my hemisphere. How’s Wednesday?” I snickered, continuing to make my way back to my apartment.

“Everything’s great here. It’s eight o’clock! Isn’t that weird? And get this—your brother is going to Yale, honey! Isn’t that great?”

“Whoa. Brother Zachary is going to Yale? The smart college? For smart people?! Nothing can ever surprise me ever again,” I joked. My mom laughed, too. For the rest of the time we talked, she just rambled on about how proud she was of me and my brother, saying how we were such great kids. Along with inquiries on if I got the job yet. I told her that it wasn’t a sure thing yet, but there was a good chance I was going to get in. She was so happy, and so was my dad, who was doing great, she said. She mentioned how he’d gotten into a case with mass murder. As much as I wanted to be side by side with him here and now to find the killer, I knew my place was currently here in Japan. After an hour and a half of talking to my mother, she hung up and went to bed.

Sleep… that sounded nice. It was only about 1:30 in the afternoon, but I was tired. It had been a long day, and I had been contemplating the same thing the whole time. It all began this morning, when I turned on the TV and the news was talking about a few strange incidents—children had been held as hostages for a few hours then ran out of the building after their kidnapper had collapsed. It was confirmed a heart attack. The odds of that? 1050 to one at the very least. Especially in Japan. It was typical in America. Alas, I dismissed the curious thoughts. Anything is possible—or was I just telling myself that because I knew that there was something wrong in the first place? Hmm… a heart attack. It really made no sense—perhaps the man was unhealthy. Even so, that wasn’t a good enough reason. There was no evidence to back it up. And all the other incidents I read about all included criminals and heart attacks. The odds of this had to be even smaller. Something was going on, but whatever it was was beyond me. I couldn’t confirm any of my theories, but I was beginning to feel like a real detective, with my decisive deductions, and all.

And that brought me to the question of if I was actually an official member of the NPA or not. It wasn’t about doubting L, it was just… I doubted myself. I didn’t want to, but they needed the best—and I can’t be the best. I can name at least fifteen people who are better than me, the first being my father. I sighed. So many questions, so little time.

I took a seat on my bed and turned on the radio, a catchy Jpop song coming on. I sat up, about to get my pajamas on when I spotted a note on the nightstand. I cocked my head. No one has been or could have gotten into my apartment… or so I thought. The note was on thin white paper, slightly crumpled, and typed up with a common font, addressed to me in the corner. No one had bothered to put it in an envelope, which meant the sender was being hasty, knowing I’d be back soon. I opened the note. It read:

To Whom It May Concern:

I’m almost positive that you’ve noticed it, too. Things have been happening lately, things one alone cannot explain. The heart attacks. I believe it means something. And I think that you do, too. There’s something causing this, and whatever it may be, we must find out. I’ll be seeing you very soon—it has been confirmed. You will be called at exactly two thirty PM by Chief Soichiro Yagami of the NPA. He will verify your membership to the NPA. The rest will be confirmed at a later time if this case is going to turn out like I think it will.

--L

Well, that was that. Another message from L. I still didn’t understand what made me so “special” but I wasn’t going to let it bother me. And what did he mean by “the rest will be confirmed at a later time”? What was “the rest”? Whatever it was, I was a little freaked. Perhaps there was a reason behind it all, a killer behind a mask. I decided that I’d just have to wait—not only from the call from the Chief, but the moment of truth—meeting L himself.

Chapter Four

Waiting until two thirty was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my entire life. The curiosity, the burning wonder was practically unbearable. I was going to die. I was so tempted to call them, but I knew that would make me seem impatient—and patience is something a police officer/detective must have. I checked the clock—two-fifteen. It would be over soon. I heaved a sigh, sitting in my moon chair in my incredibly tiny dwelling. I decided to go back to the topic of the recent heart attacks. It was funny—L had made the same deductions as I. Probably way before I did, though. Particularly curious… The Japanese didn’t usually have to worry about heart attacks. Most of them are healthy and active, too (since driving in Tokyo is almost impossible). The chances are slim—even in America; quite a few people survive heart attacks. Then all they have to do is change their lifestyles and eating habits. But for the Japanese… it was still hard to believe. It was a nerve, racking in my brain, something I couldn’t get out. It meant something… but what?

Ugh… I couldn’t take much more of this. I was under a lot of pressure, and all these unanswered questions were killing me… was I really good enough to be a detective? I looked at the clock… two twenty-nine.

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

Tock.

Two thirty.

The phone rang. I let it ring once to show that I was excited, but not too excited.

“Hello?” I asked in Japanese. I took a deep breath and held it.

“Hello, Kylee. This is Chief Yagami—you’re in. We’d like to welcome you to the NPA. Congratulations,” I could practically hear him smile. I let go of my held breath and covered the speaker, squealing with joy.

“Oh, thank you so much, Yagami-San!” I said, more gracious and polite than I could ever be. “I promise you—you won’t be disappointed!” with that, I hung up and started dancing. I was in! I was a member. Take that, doubtful high school history teacher! I sat down after my victory dance was complete. I tried to think of a happier day in my life… I couldn’t at the moment, but I felt better than ever. Like I could do anything. It was an amazing feeling—I’d cherish it while I could. I just couldn’t wait for my first mission.

The next morning I woke slowly, which was pleasant. I stared at the ceiling for a while until hopping out of bed, ready for the day. I was especially excited since today was my first day on the job. I was to tag along with the NPA for the day, to learn about the job and my co-workers. The chief seemed to be determined and knowledgeable, the kind of person that was dedicated, not only to his job, but to his life as well. He seemed to like me, too, but I wondered if I was just saying that to make myself feel better. I shrugged it off, walking out the door, purse in hand.

The walk to the office was satisfying. I stopped at a vending machine for an iced coffee and another for an issue of Jump, flipping through the pages, examining the art in each story. By the time I arrived at the office, I finished my coffee and recycled my manga. I was greeted at the door by a large man—for the Japanese, that is. I remembered his face from the interview.

“Mogi-san, right?” I asked, hopeful. He smiled and nodded, gesturing me to come inside. I looked around, grinning, taking in the scent of Pine-sol and flowers. The floors were a covered with a shiny, mock-tile vinyl that was an off-white color. The walls were painted a coffee brown, various paintings placed about. I approved, walking into a room filled with desks and busy workers on telephones in cubicles and such. Frantic, a man approached Mogi, asking for the Chief. He said things like it’s urgent, and I need to see the chief. Mogi shook his head, the whereabouts of the chief unknown to him. With a grunt, the man walked away, fuming and panicked. His cell phone rang and he rushed to open it. I couldn’t help but listen to the conversation:

“Chief! I—Oh, you got the message, too? … … Right… Okay… The new girl?” he gave me a quick glance as I turned away, trying to make it look like I wasn’t eavesdropping. “Sure I can bring her. Alright. I know, me too. Bye.” I was most likely beaming. I was excited, whatever the news was. The man nodded at me and asked if I’d heard the conversation. I shook my head, lying. He gave me a quick rundown, though:

“Alright, this is what’s happening. There have been 52 deaths in the past week, all from cardiac arrest—and those are just the ones we’ve been notified of. They’re all criminals. The meeting will consist of nearly 100 International Criminal Police Organization members. Basically, it’s an Interpol meeting.” When he was finished, we pulled our jackets back on and headed out. The man’s name was Aizawa, who had a sweet fro. However, the whole time I was with him he had a furrow stitched in his brow. He seemed resolute, unyielding. I could see right through him. He probably had a family that he supported. I couldn’t say anything for sure, but there was something I liked about him, other than his hair. His determination defined him, quite well, I may add.

He opened the car door for me when we arrived, being as he had driven me to the meeting. I thanked him as we hurried in, finding a seat next to the Chief and another police member, named Matsuda. He was younger than many of the other members even though he was in his mid-twenties. I had to admit, though: he was cute. Naiveté was written all over his face, but I knew that he would become an excellent, loyal member.

We listened to bickering and arguing for about ten minutes until a man with a microphone called for order. The room was immediately silenced, the many people at the meeting regaining posture.

“Listen, people. We can assume that more and more criminals will be put to death by cardiac arrest if this continues for more than another week!”

“A week? We can’t wait that long! These are human lives!” Matsuda shouted, sending the room back into argumentative chaos. The man pinched the bridge of his nose, ending the discord with a shout.

“Please listen. We can assume that this is murder. But the mastermind behind it? That is currently beyond us.”

“Maybe it’s the CIA!” someone shouted.

“The CIA? Yeah, right!” disputed another. The yammering commenced yet again. I tuned it all out, thinking in my head. Of course it’s not the CIA. No organization would ever do that. Especially so since the CIA and FBI are dedicated to justice. The killer? It had to be someone in Japan. All the murders happened here, had they not? Perhaps L had thought the same thing… I didn’t want to compare my thoughts or self to L, being as that he was a genius whereas I was not. Once again, order was restored. I heard the man’s final decision.

“I think that there is no other choice—we have to leave this case to L.” The room erupted in quiet outbursts of whispers and the exchanging of rumors. L… I longed to meet the super sleuth who could solve any case. Matsuda was busy throwing out questions about L to the Chief. I stepped in.

“L is a hero,” I said. “That should be all you need to know.” The Chief nodded and then added a few more facts about him for good measure. I focused on the new man standing on the stage below.

“L, ladies and gentlemen, is already involved.” A few gasps from the audience. The man was known as Watari, L’s spokesperson. He was dressed in black, head to toe, making sure that no one could see his face. He pulled out a laptop and called for silence. We would now hear from L himself.

In that same synthesized voice, he began to speak, only a black gothic style “L” on the screen in front of us. I listened intently, absorbed in what he was saying. He explained that this was (obviously) a horrible crime, a case of mass murder that must be stopped at all costs. He requested the help of all the police members worldwide. It was coming. My chance to shine.

Chapter Five

I followed the chief and the rest of the force back to headquarters. That gave me the shivers—I had headquarters now! I was so happy. To be here, to be working, all in the name of justice. Just as we were about to head inside, the chief stopped me.

“Kylee,” he began, his signature taut line of a mouth present on his face. “Can you run to over to my house and fetch me the bag on the table? I know that this is kind of out of the blue, but I just received a call from my wife. I have to stay here for the sake of the force, and—”

“Please, chief, it’s fine. I’m at your service,” I offered. I was here to work, even if it meant intern type of work. He gave me a key, his address and his phone number just in case. It wasn’t too far from here, his house. There wasn’t any point in running. I had time. And in that time, I would take a nice walk to my boss’s house. In America, it would be pretty weird to do this unless you were an assistant (paid well, mind you) or a relative. Japan was nice. Strict, a bit unorthodox, but nice.

I arrived at the Yagami’s, rapping on the door. Oops, I have a key, I remembered, unlocking the door. As soon as I opened it, I froze. Before me was a boy—wait, I take that back. A man stood before me, just as confused as I was.

“Oh! Um, oh gosh, sorry! I’m from the NPA, here to pick up something for Chief Yagami! He didn’t tell me anyone would be home! My sincerest apologies!” I said in an attempt to save myself. I bowed deeply for a few seconds, fairly embarrassed, until he spoke.

“Is that it? It’s fine, you may come in,” I gasped a little and stood up straight. He was gorgeous. Absolutely beautiful. His features were defined, yet soft. Wispy chestnut hair fell gently over his face. But best of all… were his eyes. A deep brown like his hair, but something was hidden in them. A secret. What I couldn’t figure out, though, was if the secret was good or bad. He gestured me inside to the living room, where I found a brown paper bag atop a dining table.

“Thank you, uh…”

“Light.” Geez, even his name was hot!

“Light. That’s a neat name,” I smiled. “Thank you, once again,” he nodded. “Are you, by any chance, Chief Yagami’s son?” He nodded a second time.

“How did you know?” he smirked, curious. By now, he was giving off an aura that troubled me. It was a bit suspicious. I couldn’t say anything for sure, but this kid was up to something.

“Just a guess. I am a part of the NPA, you know.” I smirked, arrogantly. He knew I was joking. “Well, see you, Light-kun,” I said, including an honorific for politeness. I was so used to addressing people normally from being in America, honorifics just seemed to remain annoying to me.

“Hold on,” Light said, stopping me. “I don’t even know your name.”

“Oh, it’s Kylee,” I said. He studied me for a moment.

“How old are you?” I blushed. Not a question you normally ask a lady, but I felt I was obligated to answer.

“21, actually. I graduated High School a year and a half early then went to College for three years.” He nodded approvingly. Why was I telling him this stuff? “Thanks again,” I said, walking out the door.

“Goodbye,” he said with a smile. This boy… seemed so interesting. He was probably a few years younger than me, so I decided here on out I wouldn’t pay any attention to anything more than friendship. I didn’t want to flatter myself or anything, but I thought he was pretty cute. I giggled to myself. I was curious to know more about Light Yagami.

When I arrived back at headquarters, I was greeted at the door by Aizawa, who then took me straight to the Chief’s office.

...your favorite song currently? Just wonderin'.

IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN A DREAM OF MINE... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...




...



TO SING "DON'T GO BREAKIN' MY HEART" WITH WILLIAM SHATNER.

PEASANTS:

THIS DREAM IS ABOUT TO COME TRUE.



:)