His Gift to Her (Mary Sue Series)

Chapter 26

Uncle Igo may be strangely happy about everything, such as small victories in the midst of battle, but he was no pushover. He defeated the enemy with a kunai in the gut and a paper bomb on his head. Qui was hanging onto his back as her Uncle flawlessly fought everyone off, successfully protecting Qui from harm. 

After a couple of more attacks, Uncle Igo carried Qui away from the high traffic areas and took her to somewhere more peaceful. "Look at you! All grown up and much taller too!" 

"I would say the same to you but..." Qui trailed off, smiling as her Uncle picked right up. 

"Hahaha! I'm not getting any taller, silly!" 

They embraced once more, Uncle Igo's mask still fastened tightly on. 

"Uncle Igo, were you watching?" 

"I was, I was! These only happen a few times in a lifetime, so I had to come! Were you surprised?"

"I sure was. Thanks for coming to see me." 

"Great! You were doing great when you analyzed that ninja's moves too. Efficient! I like it!"

"Are you going to stay?"

"Actually, not today. I do have to run somewhere else. Stay out of trouble. know you hate fighting, little pacifist." 

Qui only shrugged. "I'm not a fighter-type. It's for selfish reasons. The only time I'll fight if it will save my life or help me become Jounin." 

Uncle Igo tilted his head one side. "Aha! You need to be Jounin in order to qualify for the historian certification exam, am I right? You're so dedicated to your work, I'm proud of you." 

"Right. Although I would like to pass, I don't know if I'll even make it to Chunin, seeing as the exam has been interrupted." 

"Don't sweat about it! Stay chill and be the world's best historian! I believe in you!" 

"Thanks, Uncle," Qui couldn't stop the upward curl of her mouth. Those were such simple words, but he always made her smile. "Good luck with whatever it is you are doing." 

"Top secret!" 

"I know. That's why you never told me." 

"Too bad! It's still a secret! Anyways! I really need to run now!" 

"Bye, Uncle! Stay safe!" 

"Bye Qui-chan! Stay healthy!" 

Qui dashed away from the scene, avoiding confrontations as much as possible, knowing she may not survive against a well-experienced ninja. 

The Kurisani girl left the crumbling arena when she spotted a group of foreign ninjas following some tracks. Moments after their departure, she spotted a familiar sensei. 

"Asuma Sensei." 

"Oh, Kakashi's student, Kurisani Qui. Come on, we've got some enemies who are following Shikamaru and the others. We'll act as backup." Both student and teacher teamed up, and the duo entered the forest after the foreign ninjas. 

For a hit-and-run village attack, the entire "war" was very short. Possibly only three or four hours in total, not counting the finals of the Chunn Exams. Maybe from when Gaara left the arena up until the strange beast from Suna and the enormous frog vanished. In a brief summary, Qui and Asuma arrived just in time to save Shikamaru from becoming skewered and became the double backup for rest of Team Seven. 

"How did it go?" Qui asked, unable to witness the finest moment of the war or Naruto's ultimate victory. She slung his arm over her shoulders and carried him on her back. 

"Good...we won..." 

Qui smiled at his tired response and looked over to see Sakura supporting Sasuke who was still completely conscious. 

"Doing okay, you two?" Qui called back. Sakura waved back, but Sasuke just glared at the ground. 

"Yeah!" Asuma Sensei who was leading the group looked pleased, and they all trooped back home. Well, technically they were home. Home grounds, certainly. 

At the hospital, both Sasuke and Naruto were immediately checked, while the girls were given the okay. Neither was harmed, save for the scrapes Sakura had on her hands and the heavy bruises on Qui's neck when her opponent had tried choking her. 

"Sasuke-kun saved me," Sakura beamed, smiling happily. "He came for me!"

"Good for you," Qui snorted. "He's not heartless. Of course, he'll save those in danger. He also likes challenging himself and putting himself in the face of danger." 

Sakura frowned angrily. "Thanks a lot, Qui."

"Oh, you're very welcome." 

"That's not what I mean--forget it." 

"I don't have amnesia right now. Forgetting is going to be rather difficult."

Sakura threw her hands up in exasperation and fury. "Fine! Why do you have to take the romance out of everything!? Last time I checked, you're not exactly powerful either!"

"Sasuke was born to be a fighter. I never said I wanted to be one. Remember on day one of Team Seven? I said I wanted to become a historian. I'm a pacifist. I don't like fighting. It's only natural my skills would be in analyzation and documentation." 

"So? You still have to fight! You're not up to par!" 

"That's rich, coming from the girl who didn't pass the preliminaries because she was too caught up in fighting her childhood friend. I'll only defend myself if needed to. I think war and fights are selfish and stupid. Besides, I acknowledged my weaknesses and learned how to become better. I looked for help and got help." 

"I didn't know anyone who could help me!" Sakura answered defensively. "Kakashi Sensei wasn't around, and--" 

"Well then, it's your fault for not looking for someone else. You should have asked around. You're not doing anything to improve yourself. I didn't realize you liked being helpless," Qui shot back. Her previous good mood with Uncle Igo evaporated into a weightless memory tucked in the depths of her brain. 

"Still, Sasuke saved me and I'm grateful to him. I saw him as my prince charming. Surely, you must have had someone who rescued you, right?" 

"I have two words for that supposedly rhetorical question: grow up. Don't rely on that person to come rescue every time. My uncle saved me hundreds of times, and I am forever grateful that he came, no matter how small that rescue it was. But we're not children anymore. We are a ninja of Konoha," Qui said, half turning to face her teammate. 

"It sounds harsh, but we don't have the luxury of daydreaming anymore. We may be only twelve or thirteen years old, but we are in a system that forces us to grow up quickly."