Chapter Text
“So, you’ve got a hard-on for the nurse?” Kakashi asked his friend.
“An emotional bond, Kakashi. Please don’t talk about my feelings as if they stem only from lust.”
Gai and Kakashi were drinking on a Tuesday night, with all the other people in crisis who got wasted on a work night. Gai roped his eternal rival into helping him out with a new problem he faced.
“I never realized (Y/N) was not just my eternal friend, but also a woman.”
“You’re definitely the last of us, then,” Kakashi said into his drink.
(Y/N) was a medic at Konoha hospital, whose clan bloodline made her a natural healer. Trained in standard medical justu, (Y/N) also had the ability to turn her chakra into a solvent which sterilized wounds, no matter the poison or toxin that might be in them. On plants, it slowed down the ageing process. The best part? It worked best when she used her lips, which made her a favorite amongst patients whose lives she saved.
“I know she is well desired, as she should be. But I love her for more than her power and her beauty. I realize that now.”
Kakashi stared a long while at his rival and friend. His eyes were intense in a way Kakashi never saw before.
“What did she say to you on that bridge that changed it all?
Gai smiled, “the most youthful words I’ve ever heard. They put my life philosophy to shame. I thought I knew her, but to hear those words…”
Gai leaned in, eyes flitting around him to make sure no one overheard the secret. Kakashi leaned in too, for once anxious to hear. Gai rarely had any secrets to share.
“Also,”
Kakashi leaned in closer.
“her breasts are exquisite.”
“Damn it, Gai.”
...
On Wednesday, when you see Gai at the Konoha hospital, he smiled brightly at you.
“Ohayo, (Y/N).”
“Ohayo, Gai. Are you here for your check-up?”
He nodded. “I have taken your advice and rotated which muscles I use more frequently to lessen the strain.”
“Yes, I can see that. Well done. But, uh, Gai?”
“Yes, (Y/N)?”
“Could you not flex while I’m measuring you? It makes it hard to get an accurate reading on the muscle density.”
Gai laughed, “I am not flexing, (Y/N).”
“Oh, wow,” you blink. “Impressive.”
It was. Were human muscles really capable of bulging like that on their own? Then again, Gai specialized in taijutsu.
“Indeed. I can carry twice my weight without a problem,” he looked you in the eyes. “I could hold onto you for hours.”
He pressed his forehead onto yours, bringing you incredibly close. His brows furrowed, and he glared as he tried to convey something meaningful within them to you.
I love you I love you I love you.
“Sounds like training’s going well, then.”
You smiled, and returned to your clipboard. Gai sat back on the medical table and stared at you, forlorn. Then he looked at your breasts, and sighed again. How beautiful you were.
…
It was a Tuesday when Gai realized he was in love with you. It was a Thursday when he confessed.
“(Y/N)-chan!” Gai yelled. The village went silent as Maito Gai approached you on the street corner. You turned, surprised.
“Ohayo, Gai-kun.” You pressed a sunflower you were holding to his chest, “what do you think of this flower? I can’t decide between buying a bouquet or a batch of summer peaches.”
“(Y/N)-chan!” He repeated. “I have determined, after all of these years, that I am deeply, madly in love with you!”
Time slowed. Strangers’ jaws dropped around you. A bushel of apples were dropped by a surprised jounin behind you, but you didn't turn to help. A grocer’s cart ran into another as the merchants stared, slack-jawed. Konoha’s Beautiful Green Beast? In love?
“Gai, I-this is so sudden. How long have you—?”
“Three glorious days!”
The whole village held in the same breath.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I feel the same.”
They exhaled. People started to mill about again, the tension gone. Gai’s brows furrowed.
“You do not believe me.”
“It’s not that,” you say. “It’s just way too soon to know—”
“You do not belive me,” he interrupted. “But that is alright. I will prove it to you. This sunflower,” he thrust the sunflower into the sky. “Will represent my chances. A petal for every chance. Once I pluck away the chances I already had.”
In a blur, Gai’s hands plucked away all the petals, save for ten.
“These will stay. The ones gone are the chances I had to confess in the past two days, and decided against action. You may not feel the same now, but that’s only because you didn’t think of it before!”
“And what if I never change my mind.”
Gai gave you the look he only wore when he made a promise.
“I will not linger forever, my sun. I ask you to grant me ten chances to prove to you I am the love of your life, and if I dissapoint, I will let the mattter rest.” Gai kneeled in front of you, staring deeply into your eyes beneath furrowed brows. “I will never force my will upon you to the point of your own exhaustion. I only ask for a chance.”
You stare at the sunflower, and kiss the petals. They shimmer once your lips touch them, taking on a soft glow.
“One petal will fall with every challenge. You have until the last, on my honor.”
Gai leaned forward, and kissed your forehead. A familiar action that had your cheeks reddening with it’s new implications.
“I will see you soon, my sun.”
The villagers left watched with bated breath. Let the games begin.