The Princess's Prize
Date: May 15th, 13 years aNb
Days since Team 11 left Mizumiyo Palace: 12
Time: 7:05 PM
Miho Hyuuga, Kimiko Itou and Nakahito Haruno sat at a large circular table in the secondary ballroom on the first floor of the Palace. There was a place setting for Sho Inugami between Hyuuga-sensei and the fire jutsu user, but it was still empty. The three ninja were dressed semi-formally, the ladies in simple dresses while Nakahito wore the same suit he'd used for the Gala, but he'd skipped all the decorations save for the white Haruno O on his lapel.
"Where is Sho?" Kimiko asked sounding slightly annoyed. "If Ojisama can arrange his crazy schedule to be here, what's his excuse?! It had better be a good one!"
A touch of a smile appeared on Hyuuga's lips. "From what I understand, as part of the bet he lost against Reiyuriko-hime he's got to be dressed in a very particular way... Apparently it will be something embarrassing, but she wouldn't tell me how. Maybe it's just taking him longer to get ready?"
Nakahito turned to Kimiko. "I'll bet you a quarter of our pay from the mission that she got some kind of stuffed animal looking costume for him."
"You might want to play for smaller stakes, 'Hito…" Their Jonin said with a chuckle. "37,500 Ryou is a LOT of money."
The two Genin went wide-eyed. "We got paid…" Kimiko did some quick math. "150,000 Ryou… EACH?!"
"While this wasn't your TYPICAL A Rank mission, it was still an A Rank."
"One percent!" Nakahito stammered. "I bet one percent of our pay!"
Itou giggled. "Deal. I'm going to bet he has to dress up like something appropriate for the preschool TV programming. Something with face paint; a clown, maybe…" Kimiko looked at their Jonin. "Care to join in, Miho-sensei?"
"Because I know your cousin so well, I'll take a stab at it, but I won't take your money if I'm right; it's an unfair advantage and whatnot…" She paused for a second in thought. "I'm thinking crossdressing… Maybe a shrine priestess or something."
The two Genin began laughing. "The red would clash so badly with his eyes, though…" Nakahito snickered. "Plus his sisters got all the cute in the family; Sho would make one homely woman…"
"Like the time Guy-sensei had to dress in drag?" Itou asked with a cruel grin.
The Jonin shuddered, rubbing her eyes with a gloved hand. "Oh, thank God I was out of the village when that happened…"
"I was this close to throwing out my entire wardrobe; he wore a red strapless cocktail dress for three days…" Nakahito moaned, a greenish cast appearing on his features. He scowled at Kimiko for reminding him of the incident. The fanfare of the Imperial Family began to play and the three ninja rose respectfully. "Saved by the horns…"
The doors to the auxiliary banquet room slid open, whisper quiet, and the three members of the Imperial family entered. Mizuzaki the 27th shook his head when he saw Team 13.
"No, no, no…" The Lord Daimyo said, gesturing for them all to sit as he took the open seat to Kimiko's left. "The three of you are friends and family, so I insist that unless you're in Mizumiyo on an assignment, you treat the three of us like normal people." Kodansyo and Reiyuriko nodded in agreement.
Miho Hyuuga smiled as Reiyuriko took the seats between her and Mizuzaki. The ninja took their seats as well. "We are honored and promise not to abuse the privilege."
"Oh, abuse it as audaciously as you like!" Reiyuriko said, patting Miho's hand before squeezing it gently. "Your team and the ones that left have performed a service to our country far greater than you were contracted for! Your extended stay may be a consequence of that service, but that doesn't mean you have to be on duty for the duration."
"Oh, that reminds me," Kimiko said, turning to her Uncle, "Thank you for letting us stay in the Palace, Mizuzaki-ojisama."
The Lord Daimyo smiled. "For starters, Kimiko-chan, you're family, so you will ALWAYS be welcome here while mine is in power. Secondly, if you insist on being formal, even in private, it's Ayanami-ojisan; okay?"
The last Itou blushed. "Hai, Ojisan."
"There you go!" Ayanami wa Mizuzaki said with a smile. "I just wish Nodoka were here to see what fine women you've both become." Gleams of tears filled both Kimiko's and Reiyuriko's eyes. "Or that we could have had you down here to visit sooner."
"Well, it WOULD have been difficult to explain why a single orphaned ninja from another country was visiting the Imperial family, after all; even if the busy Academy schedule would have permitted it." Itou smiled. "But we're reunited now and making up for lost time. Isn't that what matters?"
"Well spoken, Kimiko-nee." Kodansyo agreed. "I feel that a toast is in order."
Reiyuriko nodded. "I quite agree, my dear husband." She looked down the hall that lead to the kitchens. "Shion-chan?"
A raven-haired young woman wearing the now familiar garb of the Mizumiyo Palace staff came in, carrying two bottles. Unlike the other maids, however, this one had a name plate on her blouse. The maid bowed to the table before approaching. "Here, your Highness! For the first course, the Imperial sommelier has selected and chilled a 97 year old hand-pressed Black Queen from the Iwanohara Vineyard. It is light, yet full bodied with hints of cocoa and vanilla. A matching unfermented version made from a more recent vintage has been provided for those underage or who choose not to imbibe."
"I believe I'll be in that second category tonight, young lady." Lord Mizuzaki said. He looked at the others. "I seem to have lost my taste for mood-altering beverages as a result of the Traitor's attempts on me."
The maid bowed to the River Lord, setting the alcoholic bottle in the silver chiller by Hyuuga-sensei before walking over to the older man. The Jonin's eye twitched briefly before she sneezed. As she recovered, she leaned over and began to talk with Reiyuriko.
There was a soft pop and a slight squeak of surprise from the maid as she uncorked the bottle. A look of embarrassment crossed her features. "Forgive me, Mizuzaki-sama; I wasn't expecting a pop from the non-alcoholic bottle."
The Lord Daimyo chuckled as she poured him a small dollop of the beverage to test. "While it's more pronounced in alcoholic beverages, the air still gets slightly compressed in the corking process." He swirled the glass briefly to check for sediment before taking a sip. "Oh, my, yes…" A soft chuckle escaped the head of the Imperial family as he lifted his glass for a proper fill. "Forgive me, everyone. I'd nearly forgotten what it was like to actually be able to enjoy the taste of things. What has the chef prepared for tonight?"
"For the appetizer course, Master Chef Sakai has prepared an assortment of sushi rolls, both traditional raw and cooked." Shion said as she poured the drinks for the two Genin. "He is especially proud of what he calls 'The Fire Keeper's Roll,' which consists of spicy tuna, salmon, yellowtail, cucumber, scallions, topped with avocado and wasabi mayo."
"Sounds spicy…" Kimiko said, sounding intrigued. Itou had always been a fan of sushi, but her palate had been greatly expanded during her time as Princess Reiyuriko.
"That dress looks very pretty on you, miss." Nakahito said softly, courteously, as she poured his drink. He wasn't trying to flirt with the girl; there was just something about her that kept drawing his attention to her despite his burgeoning feelings for Princess Kanna.
He also wasn't used to pretty girls in short skirts and low cut blouses practically hovering over him and felt like he was expected to say SOMETHING.
The woman flushed slightly. "Thank you, Haruno-sama."
The maid moved around the empty seat intended for the wayward medic-nin and swapped the non-alcoholic bottle for the one nearly a century old. The cork on the second had already been pulled as the sommelier had made sure that the wine had been given sufficient time to breathe and any sediment filtered before being served. The young woman took a spot between the future Imperial couple, but paused uncertainly; looking between them with indecision.
Kodansyo chuckled, gesturing to Reiyuriko, as he seemed to instinctively understand the girl's quandary. "Until I am officially Mizuzaki the 28th, my wife is still my superior in terms of status."
The maid bowed, giving Nakahito an eyeful of cleavage before he managed to avert his eyes in embarrassment. He saw the slight scowl on Kimiko's face, but missed Miho's gloved fingers covering her lips as she bit back a giggle. "Thank you very much for the clarification, Lord Kodansyo!" The maid turned to the Imperial Princess and repeated the sampling process for Reiyuriko before doing so for Kodansyo and Miho.
Reiyuriko held up her glass for a full serving and whispered something to the maid, who nodded before she filled the glasses of the remaining diners. "I shall return shortly with the first course."
"Ojisama, I know the dress code for the maids has been in place since before you took the Throne," Kimiko started talking to her Uncle, "But have you ever given any thought to changing to something a little…" She paused, looking for a way to phrase her question without offering even an incidental insult.
"Less male fantasy and a little more practical? Ayanami wa Mizuzaki asked with a slight chuckle. Itou nodded. "A number of times, in fact, but – sadly – the majority of my Daimyo specifically look forward to seeing the maid staff as-is – and I need those men happy to generally be able to get larger issues of state resolved." He gestures to Kodansyo. "When my successor assumes the throne, perhaps he'll change it early on when the people expect him to be feeling his oats and changing things to suit his pleasures during his first year on the Throne."
The future Mizuzaki nodded. "Perhaps it's from dealing with the likes of Akago and the Traitor's chauvinistic behaviors these last few days or just because I deeply respect my beloved Reiyuriko, but I find I'm strongly inclined to enact such changes when the time comes." He smiled at his cousin by marriage. "We'll probably have to do it gradually so they don't even realize it's happening. Most of the regional lords aren't the most observant of people."
A maid with white hair entered and opened a number of tray stands so that the male servers could set down the large platters that carried a number of different types of sushi trays. She glanced around and Nakahito couldn't help but notice her eyes were an icy blue. She picked up a single tray and carried it over to the Lord Daimyo. Nakahito felt his heart pound a little as the woman with white hair passed by him. Maybe it was because this maid reminded him of Kanna now that her hair was shorter?
He winced as he felt a familiar pair of fingers jab him in the floating ribs as the woman set her slight burden down and then reach into the breast pouch of her apron to pull out a slip of paper.
He looked at Kimiko, the source of the pain. "What?" He hissed as softly as he could.
"That maid – the one you were just ogling – did you see she's got a name plate, too?" Haruno shook his head, eliciting an eye roll from Itou. Both Reiyuriko and Miho giggled slightly as they continued their semiprivate conversation.
"Here you are, Lord Mizuzaki." Shion's voice came from the white-haired woman. The jaws of the two Genin fell open slightly and they looked at each other in confusion. "The sushi on the left are the traditional style. The more mild flavors are towards the front and increase in spice heat levels towards the back. Here is a list of the differing types and their contents." She said as she set the paper before him. "And would you prefer the beef, pork, chicken, or fish entrée this evening, my Lord?"
"Ah, very nice, Shion-chan, thank you very much. I'm in the mood for something light, so I'll go with the fish tonight." Mizuzaki said as the maid bowed slightly before heading back to the first platter to fetch the next dish of sushi.
'What the hell..?' Nakahito wondered to himself. 'Shion had black hair, not white… And yet Kimi's Uncle clearly called her Shion.'
"Would you prefer the beef, pork, chicken, or fish entrée, Haruno-sama, Itou-sama?" A voice asked, interrupting his thoughts.
Blinking, Haruno noticed that all the diners now had sushi before them and the maid had finally circled around to him and his best friend.
"Um… The beef." Nakahito blinked in confusion. This maid really did sound just like Shion… And now that she was close to him, he saw that this white haired woman had the same pert nose.
Finally the fire user's confusion and curiosity finally got the better of him.
"Uh, miss? This might sound a bit ridiculous, but didn't you have black hair just a few minutes ago..?"
"Oh, not again!" The maid moaned, reaching up to pull a strand in front of her face. "White this time? Really?!"
Miho Hyuuga's lips pressed together momentarily. "Is there something wrong, miss?"
"Just an annoying quirk of my body, Hyuuga-sama… Apparently I have a little bit of chakra and it seems to like messing with my hair and eye colors for some reason. No one can tell me why; all I know is that my mood seems to influence it, but not control it."
Kimiko Itou looked at the young woman sympathetically. "That's unfortunate; your eyes are such a pretty shade of blue."
"Blue?! They're supposed to be brown!" Shion gasped in confused frustration.
As the maid began to freak out, her features began to change right before their very eyes as her blue irises changed to the same shade of pink as Sakura's hair! The fire jutsu user blinked as he noticed the woman's hair had changed as well to match the same shade of green he shared with his cousin for their eyes; it was like an inverted copy of his cousin was right there!
The maid closed her eyes, clearly trying a breathing exercise to calm herself down. "Oh, no, I felt it this time…" She dabbed at her eyes. "I'll be right back with your orders!"
As the maid practically scrambled to get away, she tripped over her feet, giving Haruno a brief glimpse of seafoam green panties. He felt his cheeks turn red as he snapped his head to look across the table to Kodansyo. He then felt a stab of guilt as he thought of Kanna in her "hospital" bed.
"That poor girl!" Kimiko said as she shot Nakahito a look that said 'If we weren't in front of my cousin and Uncle, I'd dump a glass of ice water on you to cool you off. Pervert!' Her eyes then turned to the Jonin. "Have you ever seen or heard of something like that before, Miho-sensei?"
The Hyuuga warrior shook her head. "I can honestly say I haven't, Kimiko…" She turned to the crown princess. "Reiyuriko-hime?"
The Princess shrugged. "Shion-chan's done other services for our family in the past, but this is her first time on the meal rotation."
A few minutes later, Shion returned, leading one of the guardsmen who was carrying a large tray of food for the willowy looking woman. In the time she was gone, her hair and eye colors had reversed to now have pink hair with green eyes. Nakahito could have sworn her face even looked a bit like Sakura now, but that could just be the homesickness messing with his head. The maid bowed to each of them as she set their food before them.
Nakahito glanced at Kimiko. "Hey, Kimi? Was it just me or did she look eerily like Sakura just now?"
Itou nodded. She leaned over to whisper. "Maybe we shouldn't say anything else; she's clearly sensitive about her… Condition? Curse? I don't even know what to call that!" Haruno nodded in agreement.
"Does it feel like we've met her before, though?"
The kunoichi shrugged. "I dunno, maybe? We could have seen her working in another part of the Palace and we'd never know it."
"No, not…" He sighed. "Maybe I'm just imagining it, but my brain is screaming that there's something wrong with her; and I'm not talking about the living mood ring effect… I just can't put my finger on what's giving me this feeling."
"It's called the Uncanny Valley phenomenon, Nakahito. Your instincts are trying to give you a warning." Miho Hyuuga said. "It happens when something looks like something it's not…"
"Miho-chan, please don't speak ill of my servants." Reiyuriko said, a hint of a warning in her voice.
"I don't mean to infer anything about your maid, Princess, but with everything that happened with the Traitor, can you blame me for trying to encourage my students to listen to their instincts?"
The Imperial Princess frowned. "No, I suppose I can't. But at the same time, please trust that Kurosaki-san will have done his due diligence regarding anyone that is allowed in the Palace."
The meal resumed at that point, with Shion returning a number of times – her eyes and hair shifting through the entire color spectrum between visits – to top off drinks and bring them anything else they needed as the night progressed.
The seat beside Nakahito Haruno had remained vacant.
"Okay, this is finally starting to bug me… Where the hell is Sho, anyways?" Nakahito finally demanded as Shion, her hair having turned white again, set a dessert plate in front of each of the six diners. "He's over two hours late!"
"I hope nothing's wrong with Kanna that pulled him away…" Kimiko agreed, looking around.
Nakahito grimaced; he hadn't even considered that possibility!
Miho Hyuuga began to crack up. "Okay, Reiyuriko-hime, I'm woman enough to accept that I've lost our little bet..." She wheezed, trying to catch her breath.
Confusion between the Genin reigned as they looked at each other. "Bet? What bet, Sensei?" Kimiko asked.
"I bet that at least one of you would have figured it out by dessert…" The Jonin said, shaking her head. "I guess we'll have to work on identifying active camouflage Jutsu next…"
"Figure what out?" Nakahito asked, utterly befuddled. "And what does my question have to do with training in identifying camou…" He paused, looking at Kimiko, whose jaw had already fallen open wide. Two final brain cells finally connected and his mind started screaming. "NO…"
"Shall I put a love charm on your dessert…" The maid asked; her dulcet tone, so similar to Kanna's, dropping two octaves as she talked; shifting into a voice that was all too familiar… "Haruno-sama?"
Wincing, Nakahito and Kimiko looked up… And noticed the maid now had two different colored eyes…
One green. One gray.
"Are… You… JOKING?!" Itou demanded in a shriek. She looked as if she wasn't sure if she should be mad about him being curvier than herself or laughing that the older teen had thrown away his pride so spectacularly. "SHO?!"
"What can I say, Kimiko, your cousin doesn't pull punches when she bets." Shion/Sho Inugami said, pulling the hair accessory out so "his" black lock of hair fell down into its customary position over his left gray eye.
It was so weird hearing their teammate's masculine voice coming from a feminine form. A very attractive feminine form, no less! The red-clad Genin's throat bobbed as he wanted to puke.
Being attracted to Karin for a brief instant was one thing… But this..? This was a crime against good taste!
"You used that stupid jutsu of Naruto's!" Haruno's voice declared accusatorially as the vacant chair was pulled out and the "maid" sat down.
"Do you see revolving smoke rings around my body? If I wanted to flash people as a female, I'd have no qualms about letting it all hang out." Inugami stretched, wincing. "Speaking of… How the hell is this even supposed to be comfortable?" He reached behind his back and suddenly his/her chest became slightly less perky.
Nakahito and Kimiko's eyes practically popped out of their heads. THAT was not Naruto's Sexy jutsu! The only way that could be possible was…
Now Kimiko DID laugh even as Nakahito looked like the amazing meal he'd just enjoyed was going to resurface.
Inugami was wearing a real copy of a Mizumiyo Palace maid's uniform over a form he'd crafted using the Transformation technique… Complete with bra!
'I suddenly have questions and am terrified of the answers…' Kimiko thought to herself.
"You get used to them after a few years." Miho Hyuuga said with a smile as she looked around. "Tell me SOMEONE got a photo of the look on their faces!"
"Sensei…" Nakahito said clearly upset.
Kodansyo looked at his father-in-law and then his wife, worry on his face, gesturing at the gender bent medic. Reiyuriko had told her husband and father to treat Shion as if she'd worked for the family for years, but hadn't told them why. "What in the name of the Goddess did you have to offer for a bet in exchange for him to agree to THAT?!"
"Naming rights for our first born; Sho for a boy, Motoko for a girl." She confessed. "I didn't think you'd object to either." Kodansyo chuckled in agreement, raising his wine glass to his wife.
"I didn't think she'd ACTUALLY convince him to give her his word to drop the whole Akago thing." Sho confessed with a sigh as he pointed to Nakahito. "That was the part she needed to win." He looked at the rest of his team. "I also can't believe you two didn't figure it out, given the clue right in your faces all night."
"You gave us a clue?" Hyuuga-sensei asked, confused. "I just recognized your chakra signature the second you walked in..." "Shion" pulled the name plate off "her" apron and handed it to the Jonin. She looked at it for a moment and began to laugh again.
Reiyuriko, curious, plucked the plate from her friend's hand. There were two kanji glyphs that carried the pronunciation of the medic's false name. "I don't understand…"
"Those glyphs are for the phrase 'one who does not forget;' and I have a photographic memory." Inugami clarified for the future queen.
Kimiko's palm hit her face for having missed it. "I assumed the whole point of the badge was just so people would realize it was Shion regardless of her current look!"
"Which it was." Inugami nodded in agreement. "But it's not ALL it was."
"At least tell me you don't ENJOY wearing that stuff, Sho…" Haruno pleaded, still having a hard time looking at "him."
"Well, SOME of it's comfortable… And even you have to admit I look like I'm one hell of a catch." Inugami said after a moment as "she" winked at Haruno while striking an undeniably sexy pose.
Nakahito looked like he was about to cry; having no other outlet for the confused emotions he was feeling. Kimiko looked like she was on the verge of dying of repressed laughter while Miho-sensei and Princess Reiyuriko were barely holding it together.
Finally his teammate relented. "Oh, relax you big baby; I'm just jerking your chain... It's a pain in my current form's well-padded ass, but this was the spirit of the bet, so..." He made a 'what can you do' shrug.
"Want to go double or nothing, Inugami?" Reiyuriko asked with a wide grin.
"And end up in a bikini for Haruno to ogle before he figures it out?" The medic asked sarcastically as his teammate suddenly got a greenish cast to his features. "Hard pass."
"God, please just kill me now…" 'Hito moaned miserably as the image of Shion in a bikini popped to mind.
The medic looked at his wrist and stood up. "I need to go change out of this and tend to my patient. It's been fun, but let's not do this again. Good night, everyone." He said as he tucked the silver serving platter under one arm and disappeared into the back.
Kimiko shuddered as Inugami disappeared from view. She looked at her Jonin instructor with worry. "What did we cost you for not realizing it was him, Sensei?"
"Nothing as severe as that…" Hyuuga said, gesturing after Sho with a smile. "I'm just required to remember to take a vacation at least once a year and bring the four of us down for a visit."
~•~
About an hour later, Inugami, back in his natural form and attire, was rubbing the side of his head as Imaguni Ohs chortled still at Nakahito's reaction to the revelation that Shion had been Sho all along.
"All right, that's enough…" The medic muttered to himself.
> Oh, come on… Had we pulled this before he started crushing hard on Princess Kanna, he would have been drooling into our cleavage! Pretty sure that view under our skirt gave him at least a semi… <
Inugami smacked his face. "I really don't know why it amuses you that we messed with Nakahito that much."
> Yeah, well, Mom collects photographs and blood with interesting properties. Lucia is getting into collecting bugs. I just so happen to enjoy collecting the memories of psychological torment. It's not MY fault that Haruno's reactions are nearly as expressive as Whiskers' can be. <
"You can be such a freak sometimes, Ohs…"
> Just picking up your slack as usual. <
Inugami shook his head as he approached the quarters he'd resumed sharing with Nakahito after the incident with Kanna, having moved his targeting tag from the security closet to the medical suite. As he entered the room there was a single envelope on the small table in the entry.
Sho-sa
The medical ninja's heartbeat picked up as his fingers touched the envelope. A scent of rose oil filled the air as he snatched it up and opened it. Inside was a single piece of paper: the memory clone seal he'd sent his beloved…
Now with contents.
"Motoko-sa!" Inugami cried, using the trigger he'd coded into the seal. A clone of Motoko Hata materialized. Electric currents were crackling all over it. "Looks like she's putting too much Raiken energy into the clone.
"Sho-sa… Dai…" The clone reached up to his face. "su… ki… yo…"
As the clone touched his lips, it exploded into a burst of raw electricity that knocked Inugami on his ass and left lightning-strike char points on the ceiling and floor. A goofy smile crossed his lips as he lost consciousness.
~•~
Nakahito Haruno returned to the quarters that he had to share with that crossdressing asshole and slid the door open. Inugami lay unconscious right by the entrance, a half dozen scorch marks surrounding him and he had fractal burns on his face as if he'd taken a number of Lightning strikes to the face without attempting to guard himself.
"Motoko-sa…" The white haired young man moaned in his sleep.
"What a God-damned freak…" Haruno slid the door shut. "I'm going to sleep in the barracks…"
The Genin got halfway down the hall before grumbling to himself. "Hyuuga-sensei will likely rip me a new one if I leave him like that…"
Returning to the room, Nakahito grabbed Sho by an ankle and dragged him over to the futons. He rolled him on top of one and dropped a blanket over him before storming off.
"You owe me one for this, Inugami." He muttered to himself petulantly.