Chapter 5

The chirping of the morning birds gently woke me at dawn (it had become an awful habit of mine to wake up so early from my time in the feudal era). I shifted in my covers, dropping out of my bed and onto my feet. A yawn worked its way up my body and in turn, my arms stretched high. My eyes slowly blinked away the tears that had collected from yawning, and I gazed downward. An empty floor graced my sight. 'I'm really gonna need to do some decorating soon...'

The morning went by relatively fast as I busied myself with showering and getting ready for Gekko-san. I was actually a little nervous and excited for seeing him. Which was a little odd, considering I had just met him yesterday. But, he is a nice acquaintance; one I definitely wouldn't mind getting to know a little better.

I thought I'd make a nice, standard homemade meal for lunch for us, so I set out for the streets to purchase the ingredients. As I left my apartment and locked the door behind me, I took a breath of fresh air and smelled Konoha; it was very invigorating and pleasant.

Stepping out into the streets, I wandered towards the local open market with no real knowledge of any shops around Konoha. The clamor of people selling, buying, and haggling filled my senses as I drew closer. I was pushed suddenly, as a man stormed away with no small amount of remorse from what I assumed to be an unsatisfactory haggle. I exacted my revenge with a fierce glare that would have made Sesshoumaru proud. That done, I drifted towards a stall that was selling some delicious looking fruits and vegetables. The lady stall owner smiled in kind, thinking I was helping my mother out with groceries as I made my respective purchases with some money I was given by Tsunade as a welcoming gift. I soon left, promising to return soon, and promptly finished my shopping after wandering around a bit more.

I returned home and started preparing some traditional miso soup. Shortly after finishing the paste, I felt Gekko-san's presence outside my door. "The door is unlocked!"

A moment later I heard the door creak open and shut with silent footsteps following.

"Pardon me..." Gekko's voice sounded clearly into the kitchen.

"I'm in the kitchen!"

Gekko entered slowly and blinked at the sight of me mixing the soup together. "Aren't you a little young to be cooking..?"

I frowned thoughtfully, "no, my mother always believed that I should learn how to cook at a young age, so I've been making dinners since I was seven."

He seemed mildly surprised, but made no further comment and settled quietly into a chair at my small dining table. While I waited for the soup to finish cooking, I seated myself across from him.

"I hope you like miso soup, Gekko-san." I smiled apologetically.

"I happen to like it a great deal, Higurashi-san." He said, waving off my concerns.

An easy grin settled itself onto my face as I stood up to get the finished soup for us. "The healing process shouldn't take more than an hour," I said as I brought over filled bowls for us.

He simply nodded and we settled in for eating the warm soup. A peaceful silence enveloped us as we ate.

"That was very good," Gekko said as he set down his empty bowl with a clink. I smiled happily at the compliment and nodded with a small blush.

He shifted in his seat a little and glanced around. "Where should we do this?"

"We can do it on the couch if you'd like. More comfortable, I think."

And so we wandered over to my small couch. Thankfully it fit him well enough where he was able to place his head on one rest and his feet on the other. Though it looked kind of comical to see him just barely fit on the couch. He turned a puzzled look to my amused smile and I quickly wiped it off and put on my serious face— which was quite serious, mind you.

"Alright. Everything green on your end?"

"Green...?" He asked, thoroughly confused.

'Shoot...' It was then that I remembered that I was in Konoha, not back at home. "Uh, I mean, are you ready to go?"

He slowly nodded. He seemed a little bit nervous as well, if the tensing of his body was any indication.

"Relax. It will work a lot better if you aren't tensed." I smiled disarmingly at him, and my youngness-factor seemed to have some affect on him as he relaxed his semi-rigid posture. I filed that away for future study, since it might come in handy later. A soft pink glow splashed the wall behind the couch as I got to work.

A slight yawn escaped my lips just as I finished up Gekko-san's healing session. "I'm finished, Gekko-san. Please sit up slowly and take slow, deep breaths... yes, just like that." As he performed his yoga breathing, I studied his face for any signs of discomfort. He showed no outward pain nor difficulty in breathing, and I grew pleased and smiled brightly at him. "Well, you look to be in very good health. How do you feel?"

A wondered look took over his countenance. "I feel... I... I haven't felt this good in so long... I can't even remember the last time I felt normal..." Suddenly, he looked up at me with an extremely grateful smile. "Thank you so much, Higurashi-san. I will really be looking forward to our next healing session."

"Really, it's no problem. I'm just happy you trusted me enough to take up my offer." I laughed, embarrassed.

Hayate chuckled at my pink-tinged face and bowed before heading towards the door. "I will see you again soon, Higurashi-san. Until then." The door closed and I simply stood there for a moment, basking in the remnants of the mood. Collapsing on the couch, I breathed in Gekko-san's scent from the armrest and giggled euphorically to myself. He smelled quite nice...

"Until next time... Gekko-san."

Ich bin zurück! :D

To address an anonymous review, he had to get down on a knee because she's a little short... It would be awkward if he had to bend down at the waist to grab her hand. But I'm changing that part now, so this was more for people who had read the former version.

Meh, sucked, but I just needed to get back into the swing of things. Na ja. Danke, for putting up with the long wait. c: (If you couldn't tell, I've been learning quite a bit of German in the past weeks)

Hope you enjoyed this lousy update, and hope to see you all again soon!

Tchüss!