XD Hmmmm....
Gah. Wrote more of Fullmetal Ninja. 'Cept, they're extra scenes that may actually never make it to a proper chapter. XD And I wrote them much faster than if I was writing the proper chapter. Figures. But I've been thinking about these two scenes for a while (the second one for a lot longer)and I just had to write them. Obviously it's the second one that's more likely to not come at any time while the first one is more likely.
Ed and Al were still staring at the buildings in awe. And everything else too. From the ninja jumping from rooftop to rooftop to the people to the food in the stands. And they still hadn’t finished their game of ‘what’s this?’
“What’s this?”
Naruto checked where Al was pointing. “Akamaru!” He caught himself. “Dog. Puppy.”
Hearing the exchange, Akamaru turned around and growled at him in offence. In retaliation, Naruto made a face. The rest of Team 8 looked over their shoulder to see what had gotten Akamaru riled up.
He grinned at their faces, leaning on the handlebars of the wheelchair, before waving a hand over the brothers. "Babysitting. Ed and Al. Hinata, Kiba and Shino,” he said, pointing to each. A sharp bark made him point again. “And Akamaru. They don’t speak our language,” he explained to the three ninja.
Right then, the direction of the wind changed direction so that it was now behind them. Akamaru instantly shrank back and whimpered. The four ninja instantly tensed, hands reaching for their holsters.
“Akamaru?” Kiba asked, concerned, tilting his head up slightly. “What is it? What do you smell?” There was a brief pause for Kiba to understand Akamaru. His eyes flicked to the two boys in confusion before he started speaking slowly. “He says that they smell alien. That they… don’t belong on this world.”
Naruto promptly burst out laughing.
Their game had only started a few minutes ago but Shikamaru’s heart wasn’t into it. It wasn’t much of a distraction when both players were still being distracted with what they were trying to forget for that short while.
“Oi, what’re you doing?” Shikamaru sighed. Naruto. But he was another, different kind of distraction so he was welcome. Glancing up, Naruto was pushing a wheelchair with a young boy sitting in it and another boy, missing an arm, was using his other to keep a grip on the bars. So much for distraction. But it was strange just seeing Naruto standing calmly, seeming serious, unlike his usual self. Maybe the act of looking after the children was having a good effect on him.
“Playing Shogi.” He turned to see his teacher regarding the two boys with a small frown.
Naruto’s snort said what he thought about that. However, before he could turn around and leave them to it, the boy standing next to him tugged at a sleeve before pointing at the board, curiosity in his eyes. The other boy was leaning forward, craning to see the pieces that were in play. Looking between the two, Naruto rolled his eyes and began grumbling as he pushed the wheelchair to get closer.
Reaching the destination, Naruto set the brakes and moved over to where Chouji and Ino were, plunking himself down next to them. Watching the two pairs of eyes darting over the board, Shikamaru shrugged and began playing again. While they did, Shikamaru heard the two whispering as their eyes tracked the movement of each piece. The relative peace held for about ten minutes.
“What’s this?” Shikamaru’s hand paused as it hovered over a kyōsha piece. Naruto snickered.
“I don’t know how to play that so I can answer them,” he said gleefully. “They ask about everything. Don’t know how to speak our language though,” he added in what could be a thoughtful tone for him.
Shikamaru debated glaring at the blond boy, finally deciding against it because it would be a wasted effort. “Kyōsha.” The finger pointed again. “Gyokushō… Hisha… Kakugyō… Kinshō… Ginshō… Keima… Fuhyō.” All the main pieces named, the two boys began talking to each other with the newly-learned words cropping up every other word, concentrated frowns on their faces.
Shikamaru moved his intended piece to where he wanted it to be, wondering if Asuma would fall into the trap. Asuma leaned forward, thinking. Taking a drag from his cigarette and blowing out the smoke, he reached forward.
“No!”
Both heads snapped to the boy sitting in the wheelchair’s outburst. He was shaking his head, opening and closing his mouth. He said a flurry of unknown words to the other boy, who shrugged, smiling slightly. He cried out in frustration and started flailing his arms.
The other boy admonished him, making him cross his arms and huff. “Ed-“ -the other boy pointed to the one in the wheelchair- “no… No hisha.” Then a strange word, nothing he had ever heard but emphasised in a way to make it clear: trap. Ed suddenly reached forward, snatched up one of the pieces (a keima) and after a few seconds hesitation, placed it slowly down on another square.
Shikamaru raised his eyebrows a little bit. While his trap had been seen and not fallen in to, it could still used in a variation later on - so long as he didn’t fall into the developing trap that Ed had started. Again, the standing boy admonished Ed (more panicked this time), turning to Asuma repeatedly saying what Shikamaru assumed was “sorry”.
Eyeing the two amusedly, Asuma asked, “Do you want to play?”
The boys started back, confused and wary.
Asuma gestured to the board with a sweep on his hand and stood up, stepping away from it. Comprehension downed and their eyes just lit up, grins appearing and nodding. Asuma helped to manoeuvre the wheelchair around to his spot, before sitting next to Naruto in the audience. The boy sat down carefully and the game started once more.
It was interesting watching the two work out their plans together. Unfortunately, they had no kind of poker faces which made things easier for him. They knew basically how each piece moved, as well as the main rules but he sometimes had to correct them on what they were down or trying to explain some of the other aspects. Like when he promoted his kyōsha piece. As well as that, they worked well together. They were able to plan several moves ahead; but so could Shikamaru. Also, they used a different kind of tactics that Asuma never used.
In the end, Shikamaru won.
There were disappointed ‘awwwww’s in their direction but that was all. They were happy though, laughing shortly afterwards. The boy sitting next to his brother (they had to be) held out his right hand and, after a few seconds deliberation, so did the boy in the wheelchair. Unsure what it meant, Shikamaru placed out his hand in one. His hand as shaken up and down twice before being passed on to Ed’s.
A congratulations?
The boy pointed to himself. “Al.” Then to the other. “Ed.” The two gave him expectant looks.
“…Shikamaru,” he said, a small smile forming. Even after what had happened at the Chuunin exams, and missing their limbs, those two boys could still laugh and play. While a lot of people died and were injured, at the end of the day, they were still alive.
Ed and Al were still staring at the buildings in awe. And everything else too. From the ninja jumping from rooftop to rooftop to the people to the food in the stands. And they still hadn’t finished their game of ‘what’s this?’
“What’s this?”
Naruto checked where Al was pointing. “Akamaru!” He caught himself. “Dog. Puppy.”
Hearing the exchange, Akamaru turned around and growled at him in offence. In retaliation, Naruto made a face. The rest of Team 8 looked over their shoulder to see what had gotten Akamaru riled up.
He grinned at their faces, leaning on the handlebars of the wheelchair, before waving a hand over the brothers. "Babysitting. Ed and Al. Hinata, Kiba and Shino,” he said, pointing to each. A sharp bark made him point again. “And Akamaru. They don’t speak our language,” he explained to the three ninja.
Right then, the direction of the wind changed direction so that it was now behind them. Akamaru instantly shrank back and whimpered. The four ninja instantly tensed, hands reaching for their holsters.
“Akamaru?” Kiba asked, concerned, tilting his head up slightly. “What is it? What do you smell?” There was a brief pause for Kiba to understand Akamaru. His eyes flicked to the two boys in confusion before he started speaking slowly. “He says that they smell alien. That they… don’t belong on this world.”
Naruto promptly burst out laughing.
Their game had only started a few minutes ago but Shikamaru’s heart wasn’t into it. It wasn’t much of a distraction when both players were still being distracted with what they were trying to forget for that short while.
“Oi, what’re you doing?” Shikamaru sighed. Naruto. But he was another, different kind of distraction so he was welcome. Glancing up, Naruto was pushing a wheelchair with a young boy sitting in it and another boy, missing an arm, was using his other to keep a grip on the bars. So much for distraction. But it was strange just seeing Naruto standing calmly, seeming serious, unlike his usual self. Maybe the act of looking after the children was having a good effect on him.
“Playing Shogi.” He turned to see his teacher regarding the two boys with a small frown.
Naruto’s snort said what he thought about that. However, before he could turn around and leave them to it, the boy standing next to him tugged at a sleeve before pointing at the board, curiosity in his eyes. The other boy was leaning forward, craning to see the pieces that were in play. Looking between the two, Naruto rolled his eyes and began grumbling as he pushed the wheelchair to get closer.
Reaching the destination, Naruto set the brakes and moved over to where Chouji and Ino were, plunking himself down next to them. Watching the two pairs of eyes darting over the board, Shikamaru shrugged and began playing again. While they did, Shikamaru heard the two whispering as their eyes tracked the movement of each piece. The relative peace held for about ten minutes.
“What’s this?” Shikamaru’s hand paused as it hovered over a kyōsha piece. Naruto snickered.
“I don’t know how to play that so I can answer them,” he said gleefully. “They ask about everything. Don’t know how to speak our language though,” he added in what could be a thoughtful tone for him.
Shikamaru debated glaring at the blond boy, finally deciding against it because it would be a wasted effort. “Kyōsha.” The finger pointed again. “Gyokushō… Hisha… Kakugyō… Kinshō… Ginshō… Keima… Fuhyō.” All the main pieces named, the two boys began talking to each other with the newly-learned words cropping up every other word, concentrated frowns on their faces.
Shikamaru moved his intended piece to where he wanted it to be, wondering if Asuma would fall into the trap. Asuma leaned forward, thinking. Taking a drag from his cigarette and blowing out the smoke, he reached forward.
“No!”
Both heads snapped to the boy sitting in the wheelchair’s outburst. He was shaking his head, opening and closing his mouth. He said a flurry of unknown words to the other boy, who shrugged, smiling slightly. He cried out in frustration and started flailing his arms.
The other boy admonished him, making him cross his arms and huff. “Ed-“ -the other boy pointed to the one in the wheelchair- “no… No hisha.” Then a strange word, nothing he had ever heard but emphasised in a way to make it clear: trap. Ed suddenly reached forward, snatched up one of the pieces (a keima) and after a few seconds hesitation, placed it slowly down on another square.
Shikamaru raised his eyebrows a little bit. While his trap had been seen and not fallen in to, it could still used in a variation later on - so long as he didn’t fall into the developing trap that Ed had started. Again, the standing boy admonished Ed (more panicked this time), turning to Asuma repeatedly saying what Shikamaru assumed was “sorry”.
Eyeing the two amusedly, Asuma asked, “Do you want to play?”
The boys started back, confused and wary.
Asuma gestured to the board with a sweep on his hand and stood up, stepping away from it. Comprehension downed and their eyes just lit up, grins appearing and nodding. Asuma helped to manoeuvre the wheelchair around to his spot, before sitting next to Naruto in the audience. The boy sat down carefully and the game started once more.
It was interesting watching the two work out their plans together. Unfortunately, they had no kind of poker faces which made things easier for him. They knew basically how each piece moved, as well as the main rules but he sometimes had to correct them on what they were down or trying to explain some of the other aspects. Like when he promoted his kyōsha piece. As well as that, they worked well together. They were able to plan several moves ahead; but so could Shikamaru. Also, they used a different kind of tactics that Asuma never used.
In the end, Shikamaru won.
There were disappointed ‘awwwww’s in their direction but that was all. They were happy though, laughing shortly afterwards. The boy sitting next to his brother (they had to be) held out his right hand and, after a few seconds deliberation, so did the boy in the wheelchair. Unsure what it meant, Shikamaru placed out his hand in one. His hand as shaken up and down twice before being passed on to Ed’s.
A congratulations?
The boy pointed to himself. “Al.” Then to the other. “Ed.” The two gave him expectant looks.
“…Shikamaru,” he said, a small smile forming. Even after what had happened at the Chuunin exams, and missing their limbs, those two boys could still laugh and play. While a lot of people died and were injured, at the end of the day, they were still alive.