The hospital was built in the typical Sunagakure style, with rounded shapes made of adobe. The walls were smooth and painted in warm earth tones that, somehow, made the clinical atmosphere feel less oppressive.

  "Ah, another victim of the recklessness of youth!" an elderly voice called from ahead.

  An old woman stepped out from one of the side rooms. She was short and slightly hunched with age, but her dark eyes were sharp and alert. Her gray hair was pulled back into a tight bun, and she wore the standard Sunagakure medical uniform with a white lab coat over it. It was Chiyo, one of the most respected and feared medical ninjas in the history of the village.

  "Chiyo-sama!" Soren straightened up immediately, wincing in pain at the movement but trying to snap to attention. "Good evening!"

  "Good evening my foot." Chiyo shuffled closer with her hands clasped behind her back. "What nonsense have you gotten yourself into now, boy? Let me guess: a training accident?"

  "Not exactly," Temari interjected before Soren could speak. "He challenged me to a fight."

  Chiyo’s eyebrows rose so high they nearly disappeared into the wrinkles of her forehead. "He did what?"

  "I challenged Temari-sama to a battle!" Soren declared proudly, as if announcing a great achievement. "And I held my own much longer than anyone expected!"

  "That is because I was being nice to you," Temari muttered under her breath.

  "Do you hear that, Chiyo-sama? She was nice to me! That means she likes me!"

  Chiyo looked at both of them with an expression of exhaustion. "Boy," she said slowly while pointing a finger at Soren, "are you telling me you intentionally picked a fight with the Kazekage’s daughter?"

  "Yes, ma’am!"

  "And you thought that was a good idea?"

  "The best idea in the world!"

  Chiyo turned toward Temari. "Did he hit his head during the fight? Should I check him for brain damage?"

  "Unfortunately, he was already like this before the match," Temari replied ironically.

  "Hey!" Soren protested. "I am standing right here!"

  "Then get over there," Chiyo pointed toward an exam room. "On the bed. Before you collapse and give me more work."

  Soren moved to obey, though he had to lean against the wall as Temari let him go. His legs felt like rubber and his vision spun slightly as he entered the room. The exam space was wide and airy, featuring the same rounded architecture as the rest of the building. A single bed sat in the center, surrounded by various medical instruments and shelves lined with bottles and jars.

  He managed to sit on the edge of the bed before his body decided it had finally had enough. His muscles gave out and he flopped backward onto the mattress with an undignified grunt.

  "How elegant," Temari commented from the doorway.

  "I do what I can," Soren replied, staring at the ceiling. "Chiyo-sama, may I ask you something?"

  "You are going to do it anyway, so go ahead." The old woman shuffled over and began examining his injuries with expert efficiency. Her hands glowed with medical chakra as she passed them over his torso.

  "Is it true that during the Second Shinobi World War you fought Hanzo the Salamander and lived to tell the tale?"

  Chiyo’s hands paused for barely a fraction of a second before continuing her work. "Where did you hear that story?"

  "Everyone knows it!" Soren’s eyes lit up despite the pain. "They say you were part of the team that held back his forces. You saved about a hundred Suna ninjas that day!"

  "It was not that many," Chiyo corrected with a hint of pride in her voice. "And we did not hold them back so much as we simply survived long enough for reinforcements to arrive. Hanzo was a monster in human form. Fighting him was like trying to stop a tsunami with a paper fan."

  "But you did it! You survived! That is incredible!"

  "Incredible," Chiyo snorted as she pressed her palm against his bruised ribs. Soren let out a yelp. "What is incredible is that you are still alive after challenging someone so far above your level. You have two cracked ribs, severe bruising across your entire right side, a sprained shoulder, and chakra depletion so bad you should be unconscious right now."

  "See?" Soren turned his head to grin at Temari. "She said I should be unconscious! That means I am strong!"

  "That means you are an idiot with too much adrenaline," Temari countered.

  "Temari-chan," Chiyo said without looking up from her work, "how hard did you hit him?"

  "Not as hard as I could have." Temari crossed her arms defensively. "I held back most of my techniques. We did not even use weapons."

  "Good thing. If you had used your fan, I would be picking him up with a shovel and a couple of prayers."

  "Hey!" Soren protested again. "I am tougher than I look!"

  "Boy, I have seen what Temari-chan can do to training dummies. They end up looking like they went through a wood chipper." Chiyo’s hands moved toward his shoulder and the green chakra intensified. "The fact that you can still talk means she was definitely nice to you."

  "I choose to interpret that as a sign of her affection."

  Temari let out a grunt; dealing with Soren was simply complicated.

  Chiyo worked in silence for a few moments, her medical chakra stitching the worst of the damage back together. Soren could feel the sharp pain in his ribs transition into a manageable discomfort. The old woman could be cranky and prone to moments of senility, but she was still one of the best medical ninjas alive.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  "Done," she finally said as she stepped back and wiped her hands on a cloth. "I have healed the cracked ribs and reduced the swelling in your shoulder. The bruises will fade on their own over the next few days. Your chakra reserves will take at least a day to recover, so no training or missions until I say otherwise."

  "But..."

  "No buts. If you try anything strenuous before you are fully recovered, you will cause permanent damage. Have I been clear?"

  "Crystal clear, Chiyo-sama."

  "Good." She turned to leave but paused at the door. "Oh, and boy?"

  "Yes?"

  "Next time you want to impress a girl, try flowers. They are less likely to land you in the hospital."

  With that, she left the room, leaving Soren and Temari alone.

  "Get some rest, idiot," she said as she headed for the door. "Remember not to push yourself or you will break something."

  Before he could respond, she was gone, disappearing down the hallway with the same fluid grace she had shown during their match.

  "Ow."

  A particularly sharp pain in his ribs reminded him that he was still very much injured. I should probably rest, just like Chiyo ordered. But his mind was racing too fast for sleep. Everything had gone much better than he had dared to hope. Sure, he had taken a massive beating, but he had also gotten exactly what he wanted.

  "Soren!"

  The voice came from the hallway, urgent and familiar. Footsteps rushed toward his room, and then Matsuri burst through the door. Her brown hair was messy, as if she had been running, and her dark eyes were wide with worry.

  "Matsuri!" Soren sat up quickly and immediately regretted the gesture as his ribs screamed in protest. "What are you doing here?"

  "What am I doing here?" She ran to the side of the bed. "I saw you limping toward the hospital with Temari-sama holding you up! I thought you were dying!"

  "I am fine! See?" He gestured to himself. "Mostly intact."

  "Mostly?" Matsuri looked him over with a critical eye, noting the bruises and bandages. "Soren, you look like you were trampled by a herd of horses."

  "More like by a very strong kunoichi with wind jutsus."

  "I knew this was a terrible idea; I should not have distracted the guards while you got your stupid date." Matsuri pulled over a chair and sat down heavily. "I knew you were going to get hurt. Why do you never listen to me?"

  "Because you always tell me not to do fun things."

  "I tell you not to do stupid things. There is a difference."

  "We will have to agree to disagree on that."

  Matsuri pinched the bridge of her nose in a gesture that made her look exactly like their teacher, Baki-sensei, whenever he was exasperated with them.

  "Fine, so what happened? I hid around the corner because I did not want to embarrass you in front of Temari-sama, but from what I could hear through the walls, it sounded like you were being destroyed."

  Soren felt a wave of warmth at her words. Before he could think better of it, he reached out and pulled her into a side hug, ignoring the complaint from his shoulder.

  "You do not embarrass me, Matsuri. Don’t say such silly things. You are my best friend."

  Matsuri’s face turned bright red. "S-Soren! What are you doing?"

  "Thanking you for caring." He let her go and leaned back with a smile. "And also telling you the best news of my life!"

  "What news?"

  "I did it! I got a date with Temari!"

  Matsuri’s jaw dropped. "You... wait. What? Did you actually beat her?"

  "What? No! Are you crazy?" Soren laughed and then winced from the pain. "She destroyed me completely. I think I touched the ground more times than I stayed on my feet. But she took pity on me! We are going to train together for a week as partners, and if I do well, she will consider going on a date with me!"

  Matsuri looked at him with an expression that clearly said she questioned his sanity.

  "Let me see if I have this right. You challenged one of the strongest kunoichi in the village to a fight. She beat you to a pulp. And now you think the fact that she agreed to train with you is the same as getting a date?"

  "Yes!"

  "Soren," Matsuri said slowly, as if explaining something to a small child, "she probably only agreed because she felt bad for hitting you so hard. That is pity."

  "Details!" Soren waved his hand dismissively. "The important thing is that I now have a guaranteed week of time with the most beautiful girl in all of Sunagakure! One week to show her that I am more than just an enthusiastic genin with more guts than sense!"

  "You are exactly an enthusiastic genin with more guts than sense."

  "But I can be more! I just need the chance to prove it!"

  Matsuri looked at him with reluctant affection. "Most people would be discouraged after getting beaten like that. But here you are, treating it like a victory."

  "It is a victory! I got what I wanted!"

  "No, you got a training partner who probably plans to beat you up every day for a week."

  "Exactly! A whole week of her attention!" Soren’s eyes were practically glowing with excitement. "It is perfect, Matsuri! Everything is falling into place!"

  Matsuri just shook her head, but she had a small smile on her face now. "You are an idiot."

  "Hey, Matsuri?"

  "Yes?"

  "Thanks for being here. I know I have been a bit absent lately with all the training and the planning. But you are important to me. You know that, right?"

  Matsuri’s expression softened. "I know, dummy. That is why I keep putting up with your crazy plans." She paused and added with a mischievous grin, "Besides, someone has to be there to tell you 'I told you so' when this inevitably blows up in your face."

  "It is not going to blow up in my face!"

  "Uh-huh. Sure. Just like your plan to impress that girl at the market by juggling kunais didn't blow up in your face."

  "That was one time! And I only cut myself a little bit!"

  Matsuri rolled her eyes so hard Soren worried they might get stuck that way.

  "Do you know what your problem is, Soren? You fall in love with every pretty girl you see. Remember the merchant’s daughter last month? You wrote her a poem."

  "It was a haiku!"

  "It didn't even follow the proper haiku structure! And what about the kunoichi from the diplomatic delegation? You tried to serenade her."

  "I have a very lovely singing voice!"

  "You sounded like a cat being strangled. She reported you to village security."

  Soren crossed his arms defensively. "Those were practice runs. This time is different."

  "How is it different? Aside from her being much more capable of killing you than the others were."

  "Because this time I have optimism! Optimism is the path to victory! You have to believe in yourself and take risks! You have to reach for the flowers of this world and appreciate their beauty!"

  "Oh my god, please stop talking before you make me want to gag from all the cheesiness."

  "Never! I shall shout my philosophy from the rooftops!"

  "The rooftops are too high for you. You would probably fall off and break your neck."

  "Then I shall shout it from the ground!"

  Their banter was interrupted by Chiyo, who shuffled back into the room with a disapproving look.

  "What is all this noise? This is a hospital, not a marketplace! There are other patients trying to rest!"

  "We’re sorry, Chiyo-sama!" both genin said in unison.

  The old woman snorted, but her expression softened slightly at the sight of the friendship between them. "You two remind me of myself and my brother when we were young. Always causing trouble and driving the elders crazy." She waved her hand dismissively. "But that was a lifetime ago. Now, boy, you need to rest. And you," she pointed at Matsuri, "need to leave so he can do so."

  "Yes, ma’am." Matsuri stood up and turned to Soren. "Get some sleep, idiot."

  She gave him one last wave and headed for the door, then stopped and looked back. "Oh, I almost forgot. Baki-sensei wants to see us tomorrow morning. He said something about a mission."

  Soren’s eyes went wide. "A mission? What kind of mission?"

  "He didn't say. Only that we need to meet him at the usual spot at eight in the morning. But he sounded serious."

  She waved again and disappeared down the hallway, her footsteps fading as she went.

  Soren sat there on the bed, his mind now racing in a different direction. A mission. Tomorrow morning. What could Baki-sensei want? They hadn't had a mission in over a week, which was unusual. Most genin teams were kept on a steady diet of tasks, from simple escorts to border patrols.

  ****

  

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