Naruto: Snow Cold

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm actually excited to go back to school for once. Our break has been nice and all, but there's something about getting back into the rhythm of things that feels right. We've only got like a week or so before we're back at the academy.

Presently, I was just goofing off with my family, spending some quality time with them. My father managed to catch a break from the training missions and missions as a whole, so he was home for the day. It was rare to have him around, so I made the most of it.

"Plus four, eat it!" I shouted, grinning as I laid down the card that would send Jun scrambling to draw more.

"Not the Plus Four again. This is rigged! How do you keep getting cards this good?!" Jun exclaimed, throwing his hands up in mock frustration. Always fun to cause someone pain and suffering while playing Uno, or rather, Ichi.

Ah, I have a great idea! Marvelous, even!

In response to his frustration, I reached out for my guitar, setting my cards down on the table as I picked it up. I positioned myself, and began playing that one sad song from SpongeBob. You know, the one played by Mr Krabs using the world's smallest violin. This served as both mock sympathy and as a way to show off how much progress I've been having with the guitar to my dad.

Of course, they didn't get the reference, but at least the message was clear, hahaha! My father just narrowed his eyes at me, lips twitching as if deciding whether to frown or laugh, "Oh, so you're rubbing it in with music now? Just watch me, I'll get some real good cards this time!"

I couldn't help but smirk as I strummed the final chord, "Keep telling yourself that, dad. I'll win this time!"

Having said that, I let go of my guitar and grabbed my cards again, straightening up in my seat as I prepared for the next round. I glanced over at my dad, who was eyeing me with an almost predatory focus now. What kind of play shall you use? His expression was sharp, calculating. This wasn't just a casual game anymore; he was in it to win. To triumph. I could feel the tension in the air, the excitement building with each second that passed.

...

The pressure was insane. I had three cards left, and he was analyzing what move to take. His eyes scanned his cards, then flicked to mine, calculating the odds. Mom had been strangely quiet, looking down at her own cards, though I could tell she was watching us carefully.

"I'm skipping you," he said, before placing down a Skip card with a triumphant flick of his wrist.

...

What the absolute fuck. What the actual hell is this? Are you... Are you kidding me? This is bullshit!

Twenty.

Twenty fucking cards. I was eating twenty cards at once.

I was this close to winning, goddamn it! I had just one damn card!

The amusement was clear in their eyes, both of them clearly enjoying my misery. My dad was grinning like a maniac, and even mom had a little smirk on her face. They both knew I was beyond disbelief, and they were reveling in it.

"So, how does it feel to taste your own medicine?" my dad asked, practically vibrating with amusement, the prick. No wonder this game 'destroys' friendships.

I shot him a death glare, my chest tight with frustration. "Not. Nice. Not nice at all."

"Hey, karma's a real thing, Amai. You did this to me, and now it's coming back to bite you!" my dad said, his grin stretching ear to ear. His smugness was practically radiating off him in waves, and it only made my blood boil more. You fucking prick! You absolute villain! I wanted to scream it, but instead, I settled for glaring daggers at him while clutching my monstrous hand of cards like it was a shield against his smugness.

Mom chuckled, clearly amused by the chaos. "I'd say this is a life lesson in humility. Shouldn't have played that song to mock him, dear."

"Lesson? What lesson?! This is straight up bullying!" I snapped, gesturing dramatically at the mountain of cards in my hand. "You both made me draw twenty cards, mom. Twenty! This isn't karma—this is war!"

I continued my outburst, my tone laced with venom "Oh, it will be war, alright. You have no idea what kind of cards I have left. The moment it becomes my turn... It's over for the both of you."

Mom raised an eyebrow, unable to hide the faint glint of caution in her eyes. "We'll see," she said, her voice tinged with both confidence and skepticism. "You won't defeat the both of us that easily."

Dad chuckled, shifting in his seat as he toyed with his cards. "Pfft, yeah. I doubt you're gonna do anything, considering how many cards you've got in your hand."

"Just watch," I declared, holding up my fan of colorful cards like a shield. "I'll drown the both of you in Plus Twos and Plus Fours!"

So, we continued bickering and playing, all in good fun. The table was a battlefield, filled with triumphant cheers, groans of frustration, and plenty of smug grins as the game went on.

Eventually, somehow, despite the chaos, Jun managed to win.

"By the way," Dad said, leaning back in his chair and pointing at his headband with a smile, "have any of you noticed anything different about me?"

Both Mom and I paused, exchanging a curious glance before turning back to him.

"Your headband?" Mom asked, tilting her head slightly as she studied it.

I squinted, trying to figure out what he was hinting at. What the hell is he trying to imply? "Did you... clean it? Or get a new one?"

He grinned, clearly enjoying the suspense. "Not exactly wrong, but it's not that. Take another guess."

Both of our eyes widened at the realization, and my mother gasped. "Wait... Jun, don't tell me—"

He adjusted his headband, crossing his arms with a satisfied smirk. "That's right. I got promoted to an Elite Chuunin just today."

Mom's expression shifted into one of pride, her eyes softening as she smiled. "Oh my god, Jun. That's incredible! Congratulations!"

No kidding, how did he manage to pull that off? I thought to myself, completely taken aback by the news. He's skilled and strong, but... When? 

"Yeah, that's amazing." I chimed in, still trying to process it. "How did you do it? Is there like an exam or anything of the sort? Did you need like a certain amount of missions completed?"

I was baffled. Out of the hundreds of thousands of people living in Konoha, he had become one of the few hundreds of elite chūnins. And even then, the number of jōnins in the village was barely in the hundreds. The amount of elite jōnins was even lower than that.

Dad must have noticed my stunned silence because he let out a light chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck. "The times I got battered and bruised in those training missions wasn't for nothing," he said with a grin. "I have led in quite a few missions too, C and B ranked."

I blinked, processing his words. "Wow... You've been leading missions?! That's huge! Hey, is there any awesome jutsu you could teach me? Like a new wind technique or anything like that!"

Really, I wanted to learn something from him. It was both an opportunity for me to grow stronger and spend more time with him. I continued, using the chance to hint at my need to start sensor training, "...Or maybe, sensing stuff? That'd be really cool."

He raised an eyebrow, evidently recognizing my desire to learn more. "Oh, you want to start sensor training? Why?"

"Uuuuuh..." I thought back to my conversation with Sora, and just spoke my mind, "It could be really helpful if someone ever tries sneaking up on me, or if I ever want to find someone really specific, like a friend, or... Sensing traps, and enemies I can't see."

Dad stared at me for a moment, then gave a small chuckle, "Very good reasoning," he said, "Don't worry, I'll arrange a tutor for you and that friend of yours. Sora, wasn't it?"

...

Huh? That easy?

I blinked, surprised "Wait, you'll do that for the both of us?"

He smirked, certainly enjoying my reaction. "Of course. If you want to become a sensor so badly, then who are we to stop you? No 'sense' in wasting time, am I right? No pun intended."

I snickered. That was funny.

"In all seriousness, it's not an easy task. A lot of people start sensor training and most of them just quit, because their chakra field is simply too minuscule. Even constant growth wouldn't give them the edge, so don't be disappointed if you can't do it."

"That friend of yours... You're pushing each other to become stronger every day, aren't you? He's also the one helping you with the guitar, isn't he?"

I nodded. He was right about that. Sora and I were almost always training together, and helping each other with different stuff. Like Jutsus and music. "Yeah, he's been giving me tons of advice with the guitar, and we've been training together a lot."

Jun gave me a melancholic look, his expression softening as he spoke, "That's good, that's good..." He paused, then added, "Your friends... Keep them close. Keep them closer than anything else."

His words hit me in a way I wasn't expecting. I didn't particularly care about friends in my past life, because I was more of a loner. Not by choice, though, because I simply couldn't approach people. I was the quiet kid—the one who stayed on the sidelines, observing from a distance but never really connecting.

The one who only ever opened up to those closest to them.

But, it was different now. I had a chance to start over. Make some real connections, ones that weren't bound by fear or hesitation.

"I will, dad."