The Life of Ki (Naruto Fanfic)

Falling Leaves

About an hour later, I'm utterly exhausted. I've always seemed to be a little lower in chakra, and the mass emissions I've been attempting remind me of this.

I lean my arm against the tree as I bend over to pick up the book I borrowed from Iruka. I had better return to book to the Academy library before I forget to do so. I straighten up and head towards the Academy once more.

I should probably plan to meet with Kakashi later today. His advice was decently helpful, and I need to prove I can do this move.

On the way to the library, I pass a familiar flower shop: Yamanaka Flower Shop. Ino and Sakura stand out front, each selecting a flower from the beautiful array.

They both wave to me as I walk past, and I wave politely back. I can guess where they are going: Sasuke's hospital bed most likely.

I've visited him a couple times in the last week, but less now that he is conscious again. Every time I visit, it's typically awkward, not to mention Ino and Sakura are usually present so I don't get to do much.

I'm relieved that Ino and Sakura are there. It would be embarrassing if I were left in the room alone with him. It was easier when he was unconscious.

I have a wave of guilt as I see the adjacent road that leads to the hospital. Sasuke is my teammate, and I really should support him better in his recovery.

I've done the minimum: visiting him, get-well-soon gifts, and I even offered to take care of any plants he might have at home.

But due to my intense training schedule with Iruka, even Kakashi might be surpassing me in supporting Sasuke's recovery.

Yay! I'm always up for seeing him. I don't have any flowers on hand to bring Sasuke, but I doubt he needs anymore due to the surplus Ino, Sakura, and his other fangirls have been bringing.

I set off to the hospital with nothing more than my company to offer. Maybe if I'm lucky, I'll spot Naruto at the hospital too. I haven't really spoken to him since the two of us started training. He went off with Ebisu somewhere, and I really haven't heard anything about his progress since.

In fact, I've heard hardly anything from any of my friends in this last week. Only me, Naruto, Shikamaru, Neji, and Sasuke advanced through the prelims, and everyone has been avoiding the five of us.

I can't blame them: I'm 'too relaxed'. It drives my friends crazy how lightly I'm taking the exams.

Anyways, maybe I should take a day off tomorrow to relax with a couple of friends? It's probably a bad idea during such an important part of my life, but I've really been neglecting some close friends. I push these thoughts out of my mind as I hear screaming up ahead on the road to the hospital.

"Stop, stop!" A woman's voice rings out.

Silently, I rush around the corner to the hospital garden to see what's the matter. I panic for a second as I imagine what might be occurring. Someone is probably trying to leave the hospital before they are cleared.

I wouldn't be surprised if it's Sasuke. As I bend the corner, I realize that none of these things are happening.

"Stop! You'll hurt yourself!" I see a nurse with her hand over her mouth as she stands over a fallen figure, urging him to stop his activity.

Lee lies on the ground, slowly lifting himself back to his feet. Or so, I think for a brief moment. I quickly realize that Lee is doing pushups on his one uninjured arm.

After the preliminary matches, I had heard the news that Gaara had broken both of Lee's legs and one of his arms.

Kakashi had mentioned to me briefly that it was very serious, but whenever I got around to visiting Lee at the hospital, he always seemed very optimistic about his recovery. Yet here he is straining his muscles once more.